Komfie Manalo

The Australia New Zealand Bank Ltd. (ANZ) announced in Friday it has hired a team of experts as part of its thrust to expand its commodities operations into Asia. The new hires were comprised of physical gold distributors, treasury and funding specialists from Western Australia's Perth Mint.

Global satellite networks and services provider Hughes Network Systems, LLC has announced the creation of Hughes Network Systems Australia Pty. Ltd. as part of the company's commitment to serve this strategic and rapidly growing market, particularly in the area of Ka-band satellite technology and services.

A study made by the Heart Foundation of Australia showed that the cost of ambulance fees is the primary consideration of the public when dialing for medical assistance even during emergencies.

Videogame publisher, SouthPeak Interactive Corporation has confirmed it would publish the next installment Firefly Studio's real time strategy title Stronghold series after a recent asset acquisition.

Sprott Asset Management, a business unit of Sprott Inc. and manager of the Sprott family of mutual funds, hedge funds and discretionary managed accounts, has approved the $2.5 million financing deal with RX Exploration Inc. through Brant Securities Limited.

The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ANZ) has announced plans to distribute and trade its FX structured products using FinIQ's structured product system.

Australians are contributing their share to help in the clean up of the one of the worst oil spill along the U.S. Gulf Coast beaches. Australians are sending their hair, tons of it.

Taseko Mines Limited and Franco-Nevada Corporation completed a deal that will see Franco-Nevada buying at least 22% of the life of mind gold to be produced by Taseko from its planned Prosperity Gold and Copper mine in British Columbia.

Leading index provider Standard & Poor's Indices announced on Wednesday changes in the U.S. indices. It said that the S&P SmallCap 600 constituent Rock-Tenn Co. would replace Varian Inc. in the S&P MidCap 400 index, and LSB Industries Inc. will replace Rock-Tenn in the S&P SmallCap 600 index after the close of trading on a date to be announced.

The Emirates Group defied global market instability and economic uncertainty, posting a record profit rise of 248% in the last fiscal year.

April started impressively for global hedge funds, but returns started to falter in the last few days as the Greek contagion caught up with most strategies. The Lyxor Global Hedge Fund index, an investable index based on Lyxor's hedge fund platform which tracks the overall hedge fund universe, was up +0.9% in April, lifting year to date gains to 3.0%.

Data provider EPFR Global said that the Greece's fiscal crisis would stunt Europe's growth prospects and the ability of riskier sovereign borrowers to tap credit markets kept investors on edge going in May.

Gold pushed to a record high $1,236.60 an ounce by 0302 GMT Thursday, up 25 cents from New York's notional close on Wednesday, when it roared to a record $1,248.15 on worries that a $1 trillion European rescue package will not solve the euro zone debt crisis.

A doctor from New South Wales was sentenced to eight months imprisonment by a Sydney court after he was found guilty of managing corporations while his license to manage was still suspended.

LCH.Clearnet Ltd., the largest independent clearing house group, has cleared the first-ever 50-year interest swap trades (IRS) through its SwapClear offering.

A study made by Greenwich Associates has found that global foreign exchange markets are migrating to electronic execution since last year as e-trading volumes increased amid a decline in overall FX trading activity.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has provided class order relief which will help promote the issue of vanilla corporate bonds to retail investors.

To prevent the so-called 'May 6 rout" from happening again where the crash on Wall Street markets caused a global ripple effect, U.S. regulators Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), announced the creation of the Joint CFTC-SEC Advisory Committee on Emerging Regulatory issues.

Global alternative management community Managed Funds Association (MFA) and the Boston Hedge Fund Group (BHFG) announced on Wednesday a new alliance, which makes them a formidable lobby group, especially when regulators across the globe are proposing tighter regulations into the hedge funds industry.

BTIG LLC, a broker dealer focused in institutional trading and related brokerage services, has announced its expansion into fixed income and equity capital markets. The move is seen to allow issuers a variety of solutions across their entire balance sheet and complements BTIG's existing lines of business, while leveraging its distribution platform and the deep experience and relationships of its sales and trading professionals.

Consulting firm to the asset management community KB Associates on Wednesday said it is bullish on hedge funds and said it expects the sector to expand despite proposed tighter rules by different governments.

The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), the largest public pension fund with assets totaling US$207 billion, said it would review the pension's forecasts of capital market returns at the upcoming workshop on May 17.

A survey made by McKinsey Global, a financial research firm, has shown that the ongoing shift in global economic activity from developed to developing economies are being driven by at least five forces.

Leading global marketing research firm Research and Markets announced the release of its latest report entitled: "Australia Patient Monitoring Market Outlook to 2016" to their offering.

Corporate watchdog Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said it would extend relief to operators of "frozen funds" making hardship payments to members where the fund is in the process of winding up.

The global hedge funds industry once again proved to be a good investment have after the Hennessee Hedge Fund Index advanced 1.30% in April (4.61% YTD), while the S&P 500 rose 1.48% (6.42% YTD), the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 1.40% (+5.57% YTD), and the NASDAQ Composite Index advanced 2.64% (8.46% YTD) during the same period. Bonds advanced, as the Barclays Aggregate Bond Index increased 1.04% (2.84% YTD) and the Merrill Lynch High Yield Master II Index increased 2.24% (7.17% YTD) in ...

The hedge funds industry continued to perform relatively well amidst global economic turmoil in April and on the back of the European debt default crisis as early estimates indicate that the Credit Suisse/Tremont Hedge Fund Index (Broad Index) will finish up +1.49% in April (based on 74% of assets reporting).

The International Monetary Fund reported that Latin America and the Caribbean are experiencing better-than-expected economic recovery but at different speeds across countries.

Australia's mobile market is seen to rise 5.5% in terms of revenues from 2008 to 2014, according to global marketing research group, Research and Markets.