Stocks End Near Session Highs, Led by Banks

Stocks closed near session highs Monday, fueled by a merger between two big Greek banks, a better-than-expected personal spending report and as the damage from Hurricane Irene over the weekend was less than feared.

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Stocks recover after Bernanke predicts US growth

Stocks turn higher, erasing early losses, as Bernanke predicts long-term US economic growth

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Sellers Emerge Ahead of Bernanke Speech

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major stock averages fell on Thursday as traders were quick to shed positions ahead of a keenly awaited address by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday.

A report showing U.S. job market weakness and concerns over a sharp drop in German stocks were the latest global economic concerns, fueling a wave of selling that picked up steam.

"They're selling ahead of Bernanke and being fairly cautious in their positioning," said Len Blum, managing partner of Westwood Capital LLC in New York.

New U.S. jobless claims rose last week, the government said, suggesting the job market is still struggling.

"It's just a skittish market," he said. "You had jobs this morning, which wasn't a great thing. It's not a very bearish sentiment around here... It's just everything -- a convergence of factors -- including the European situation and unemployment."

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Stocks stage afternoon rally; Gold drops $104

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks are closing higher after a late afternoon surge. Gold dropped $104, the dollar and government bond yields rose as investors became less fearful.
A rise in orders for long-lasting goods like cars and aircraft in July eased fears that the U.S. was headed for another recession.

Stocks rose for a third straight day, but only after swinging from gains to losses and back again. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 144 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 11,321 Wednesday.

The S&P 500 index rose 15, or 1.3 percent, to 1,178. The Nasdaq rose 22, or 0.9 percent, to 2,468.

More than two stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange Trading volume was above average at 4.6 billion shares.

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Stocks Jump; Dow Headed for Best Gain in Two Weeks

Benalec posts RM22.81m net profit in 4Q

KUALA LUMPUR: Benalec Holdings Bhd posted net profit RM22.81 million for the fourth quarter ended June 30, 2011 on the back of revenue RM65.96 million.

Earnings per share was 3.10 sen while net assets per share was 47 sen.

Reviewing its results, Benalec said on Monday, Aug 22 attributed its net 4Q net profit due to recognition of net gain on disposal of land held for sales, fair value gain on acquisition of a subsidiary, and offset by listing expenses in the previous quarter.

For the financial year ended June 30, Benalec posted net profit RM96.08 million on the back of revenue RM214.49 million.

Going forward, Benalec said the prospects for growth were bright based on the future projects in the pipeline that exists particularly in Penang, Melaka, Iskandar, Port Klang and the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE).

It said the Tenth Malaysia Plan had ports and harbour industry as a key economic sector for targeted growth in Malaysia and had allocated a substantial amount of funding in support of the industry.

“The Government is committing resources towards making Malaysia a high income, high Gross Domestic Product (GDP) nation by the announcement of the five (5) economic regions during the Ninth Malaysia Plan, by which the development of these regions encompasses coastal, rivals and waterfront development as well as the upgrade of infrastructure such as the CONSTRUCTION [] of power plants and energy stations, better drainage control and flood mitigation systems.

“On the regional front, the opportunities that exist in Asia Pacific with future projects estimated at over RM170 billion, are a compelling incentive for Benalec to invest and expand its operations beyond domestic borders,” it said.

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Wall Street sinks for fourth straight week

NEW YORK: Wall Street ended a fourth week of losses on a down note on Friday, Aug 20 as most buyers left the market before the weekend on growing fears of another U.S. recession and destabilization in Europe's financial system.

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Stocks turn lower as traders prepare for weekend

MRT Co takes over

Putrajaya: The Cabinet has set up MRT Co, a company under the Minister of Finance Inc, to directly oversee the multi-billion ringgit Klang Valley MY Rapid Transit (MRT) project.

MRT Co will officially become MY Rapid Transit project and asset owner, currently held by Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd, from September 1.

The government will name a local as MRT Co's chief executive officer at a later date, according to a statement by Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) yesterday.

"MRT Co's immediate and critical priority is to focus on ensuring the smooth implementation of the Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line," Pemandu said.

With MRT Co in the picture, Prasarana will now be able to focus on its role to ensure an efficient and reliable public transportation service in the Klang Valley, it added.

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Financials Lead Global Sell-Off But This Is Not 2008: Yoshikami

Wall Street ends sharply lower on recession fears

Wall St. Erases Last Week's Losses on Big Merger Monday

New life in KL plan

Kuala Lumpur: Urban regeneration projects in Malaysia may be given a new breath of life with the RM9 billion Tamansari Riverside Garden City development in Kuala Lumpur starting soon.

The first regeneration project for Malaysia was the development of Subang Jaya in Selangor in the 1960s, initiated by second prime minister, the late Tun Abdul Razak.

The idea was later mooted by Tun Abdul Razak to regenerate the Pekeliling flats area, located along Jalan Tun Razak-Jalan Pahang in the 1970s, which is now known as Tamansari.

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Stocks soar on small positive economic signs

NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street's wildest week since 2008 continued with another 400-plus point move for the Dow on Thursday. This time, stocks shot up after investors saw small signs that the economy might not be headed into another recession.

Fewer Americans joined the unemployment line last week, and a technology bellwether said revenue could grow faster this quarter than analysts expected. The news pushed prices on long-term Treasurys down, and gold fell from its record high.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 549 points, or 5.1 percent, to 11,269 at 3:45 p.m. in New York.

During a calm market, a 400 point move would rank as the Dow's biggest in months. During this volatile week, it's the smallest. On Monday, The Dow plunged 634 points only to gain 429 points Tuesday and then sink 519 points Wednesday. If the Dow stays above 400 points through today's close, it would be the first time in its history that it had four-straight 400-point days.

Such big up-and-down swings are reminiscent of 2008, when the financial crisis battered stocks. The last time the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose or fell by 4 percent in four straight trading days, as it has just done, was Nov. 19, 2008 through Nov. 24, 2008. Over that span, the index went from down 6.1 percent to down 6.7 percent to up 6.3 percent to up 6.5 percent.

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Market Turmoil Continues; Banks Drag Wall Street Lower on Europe Debt- Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fear returned to Wall Street on Wednesday, sending the S&P 500 to another 4 percent decline, triggered by worries that Europe's debt crisis could engulf French banks and spill onto the U.S. financial sector.

Trading was once again marked by sharp moves on heavy volume. For a fifth straight day, the Dow industrials fluctuated in a range of more than 400 points.

"What you're seeing is a very short-term, direction-oriented market," said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer of North Star Investment Management Corp in Chicago.

Worries about the strength of French lenders, including Societe Generale, triggered a selloff in European and U.S. banks. Rumors about SocGen's financial health, which the bank denied, sent its shares tumbling 14.7 percent.

An index of European banks dropped 6.7 percent and the KBW index of U.S. bank stocks slid 4.9 percent as fear grew of a possible contagion of any French crisis. Bank of America Corp lost 10.9 percent to $6.77 and Goldman Sachs slid more than 10 percent to $110.34.

The Dow Jones industrial average lost 519.83 points, or 4.62 percent, to 10,719.94. The S&P 500 fell 51.77 points, or 4.42 percent, to 1,120.76. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 101.47 points, or 4.09 percent, to 2,381.05.

Wednesday's drop came a day after stocks rallied on the Federal Reserve's pledge to keep interest rates near zero for at least two more years.

Even after Tuesday's snap-back rally, the S&P 500 is down almost 18 percent from its 2011 closing high set April 29.

The losses came against the backdrop of recent weak U.S. economic data, the United States losing its triple-A credit rating from Standard & Poor's and the inability of lawmakers to address worries that another recession may be on the way.

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Dow Gets Back 430 Points in Furious Rally

Dow rallies after Fed statement, up 429 points

NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks are rising at the closing of trading after the Federal Reserve said it has discussed policy moves it can make to spur the economy. The Fed also said growth has been slower than expected.

The Dow Jones industrial average is closing up 429 points, or 4 percent, to 11,239.77.

Stocks rallied in the last hour of trading. Stocks initially fell after the Fed made its statement, which included a pledge to keep interest rates at their record low until at least the middle of 2013.

The S&P 500 is up 53, or 4.7 percent , to 1,172.53. The Nasdaq is up 124, or 5.3 percent, to 2,482.52

The Dow had plunged 634 points Monday on the first day of trading since Standard & Poor's cut the U.S. credit rating.

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Stocks End Violent Sell-Off at Session Lows: Worst Day Since Credit Crisis

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Dollar to Be 'Discarded' by World: China Rating Agency

The man who leads one of China’s top rating agencies says the greenback’s status as the world’s reserve currency is set to wane as the world’s most powerful policy makers convene to examine the implication of S&P’s decision to strip the United States of its triple “A” rating.

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The editorial called for “international supervision over the issue of U.S. dollars” and the introduction of “a new, stable and secured global reserve currency.”

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No Chance of Default, US Can Print Money: Greenspan

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan on Sunday ruled out the chance of a US default following S&P's decision to downgrade America's credit rating.

"The United States can pay any debt it has because we can always print money to do that. So there is zero probability of default" said Greenspan on NBC's Meet the Press.

"What I think the S&P thing did was to hit a nerve that there's something basically bad going on, and it's hit the self-esteem of the United States, the psyche" said Greenspan.
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Greenspan said the current sense of crisis that has unnerved investors is about the euro zone, not the US.

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Stocks End Down 7% for the Week, Europe, Economy in Focus

Stocks zigzagged wildly in volatile trading Friday as an uncertain economy and fears about the European debt crisis prevailed.

Stocks are closing mostly lower after a day of whipsaw trading. The Dow Jones industrial average traded in a huge range of 400 points.

Investors are fearful that the debt crisis in Europe might infect banks there, roiling financial markets worldwide.

Stocks opened higher Friday after the government said hiring picked up in July, but the gains were erased within 25 minutes.

The Dow closed up 61 points, or 0.5 percent, at 11,445. The S&P 500 closed down a point, or 0.1 percent, at 1,199. The Nasdaq composite index closed down 24, or 0.9 percent, at 2,532.

The Dow fell 513 points Thursday, the biggest loss since 2008.

Three stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume was heavy at 8.6 billion shares.

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DOW fell 512 points!!

Where's the Market Value?

Dow Skids 3%, Major Averages Lower for 2011

All three major averages fell into negative territory for the year Thursday and are on track to post their steepest loss since May 2010 as investors were rattled over an intensifying global economic slowdown and ahead of the widely-followed monthly unemployment report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 411 points during session lows, led by Caterpillar [CAT 91.7606 -4.5194 (-4.69%) ] and IBM [IBM 173.52 -5.31 (-2.97%) ], after rebounding from a deep selloff in the previous session to snap an eight-day losing streak. The blue-chip index bobbed in and out of "correction territory," defined by a drop of 10 percent from its peak from its intraday high in May.

The last time the Dow dropped more than 400 points in a single session was in Dec. 2008.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also plummeted. The S&P is also in correction mode. All three major indices are currently trading in negative territory for the year.

The CBOE Volatility Index, widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, surged more than 25 percent to trade near 30.

“You’re at critical levels here—the Dow has marginally broken through yesterday’s low and the S&P has yet to do that,” Art Cashin, director of floor operations at UBS Financial Services told CNBC. “If they break through noticeably, then we could be in for further selling.”

“The fact that we’re getting the heavy volume indicates that we might be getting some selling from offshore—people who can’t raise money in Europe might be trying to raise it over here,” Cashin said.

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Mah Sing lands M Sentral deal

Kuala Lumpur: Asie Sdn Bhd has dished out the first contract for the RM9 billion privatised urban regeneration project in Kuala Lumpur to Mah Sing Group Bhd, Malaysia's fifth largest property developer by revenue.

The contract given to Mah Sing entails it to undertake a niche development on 1.6ha.

Called M Sentral, it will feature serviced residences and retail lots worth a combined RM900 million.

The urban regeneration project, dubbed Tamansari Riverside Garden City and mooted more than 10 years ago, is one of key developments under the Entry Point Projects.

Asie, a private concessionaire, has full rights and approvals to build residential and commercial properties, leisure, recreation and infrastructure facilities on 15 parcels of development land with five air rights in Precinct 2-Pekeliling of the River Corridor Development under the Blue Corridor policy of Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2020.

Located on 23ha along Jalan Tun Razak-Jalan Pahang, the former site of the Tunku Abdul Rahman flats or Pekeliling flats, the 15-year project is envisaged to be bigger than Mid Valley City.

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Stocks now down for year as economic concerns grow

Stocks retreat, with S&P down 2.6 percent as weak economic signs overshadow debt bill passage

David K. Randall, AP Business Writer, On Tuesday August 2, 2011, 4:13 pm

NEW YORK (AP) -- A sell-off is erasing all of the year's gains in the stock market.

The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 2.6 percent Tuesday as investors grew increasingly concerned about the economy. The benchmark index is now at its lowest point of the year.

A report that consumers cut their spending in June for the first time in two years added to a series of weak economic indicators have pushed stocks lower for seven straight days.

The S&P is closing down 33 points to 1,254. The Dow Jones industrial average is down 266, or 2.2 percent, to 11,867. The Nasdaq is down 75, or 2.8 percent, to 2,669.

Four stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Volume was higher than average at 5.3 billion shares.
 
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Doing Away With the Debt Ceiling

Bruce Bartlett held senior policy roles in the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations and served on the staffs of Representatives Jack Kemp and Ron Paul.

Almost 10 years ago, I testified before the Senate Finance Committee that the debt limit should be abolished. Among the others who testified that day, including Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, no one supported my position.

What we have seen, currently and in the years since that hearing, is that for any politician to deny the validity of the debt limit is effectively to support unlimited debt, something no member of either party can afford to be accused of.

The negotiations leading up to Sunday night's announcement that President Obama and Congressional leaders of both parties had reached a deal to cut trillions of dollars in federal spending over the next decade makes the case against the debt limit that much stronger. We now know that it is a powerful mechanism for political extortion.

Unless the party holding the White House has a comfortable majority in the House of Representatives and at least 60 seats in the Senate, raising the debt limit is going to remain a means by which the minority party can impose its demands on the majority.Even if the Treasury avoids default on government debt this week, we will inevitably have to go through the same political drama the next time the debt limit runs out and every time thereafter. And sooner or later the shoe will be on the other foot, as Democrats hold the debt limit hostage against a Republican president.

Unfortunately, the option of just letting the debt limit expire is not available. It is permanent law and can be abolished only by repeal or by a ruling by the Supreme Court that it is unconstitutional. Note that the law does not impose a deadline at which the debt limit runs out; rather, the limit is a dollar figure that must be amended when the gross federal debt reaches it. The date when the limit is breached is a function of Treasury's cash flow and expenses.

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What the U.S. debt deal means for the global economy

When U.S. President Barack Obama announced Sunday night that he and Congressional leaders had finally reached an agreement to raise the government debt ceiling, the world breathed a collective sigh of relief. Stock markets in Asia jumped on the news. Yes, the pact still has to pass through the Senate and unruly House of Representatives (a vote will take place today) before becoming official. But in all likelihood the scary game of brinksmanship between the country's two political parties has come to an end (for now), and as a result, the U.S. will likely not default on Tuesday. If the world's most important economy had actually been unable to pay its bills, the consequences for the global economy could have been biblical. The fact that we (barely) averted such a disaster is a bit of good news, something investors haven't had much of recently.

But just as a default by the U.S. would have had an outsized impact on the global economy, due to the unique position of America in the world, a deal struck to alter the direction of fiscal policy will also have a tremendous effect. The decisions made (or in this case, not made) by Washington in the debt agreement will reverberate through the world economy for years to come.

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