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IAG takes a hit from storms
Insurance Australia Group has said it has received more than 24,000 claims following Victorian storms earlier this month.
Extract Resources mine on track
Extract Resources said that its Rossing South project in Namibia still has the potential to be one of the world’s largest uranium mines as the feasibility study into the mine continues.
Cape Lambert to sell Lady Annie for $135m
Cape Lambert Resources shares climbed Friday morning after the company said its has entered into an agreement with Hong Kong company China Sci-Tech Holdings, for the sale of its 100% interest in the L...
Cooper Energy expects flooding to impact operations
Cooper Energy said flooding in the Cooper Basin is expected to have some impact on its operations in South Australia due to roads being cut-off and oil fields being isolated.
Pharmaxis completes Phase II study
Pharmaxis announced the successful completion of a Phase IIa dose profiling study with its new anti-inflammatory agent ASM8 in patients with allergic asthma.
Leighton sub secures $463m rail contract
Leighton said its subsidiary, Leighton Asia, had been awarded a $463m contract to construct the Tse Uk Tsuen to Shek Yam section of the Guangzhou – Shenzhen – Hong Kong Express Rail Link (...
Oroton 1H profit up 24%
OrotonGroup reported a net profit of $15.4m for the six months ended 23 January 2010, an increase of 24% on the previous corresponding period.
Myer posts 38% hike in profit
Myer said its profit for the six months to 23 January 2010 jumped 38% to $115m, not including the costs of its recent IPO.
ANZ closer to Asian RBS acquisitions
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group said it has received regulatory approvals in the acquisition of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Singapore and Taiwan businesses.
Simpson retires as Aristocrat chairman
Aristocrat Leisure announced the impending retirement of three long standing directors in an update on its board succession planning and renewal programme.
Insurance Australia Group has said it has received more than 24,000 claims following Victorian storms earlier this month.
Extract Resources mine on track
Extract Resources said that its Rossing South project in Namibia still has the potential to be one of the world’s largest uranium mines as the feasibility study into the mine continues.
Cape Lambert to sell Lady Annie for $135m
Cape Lambert Resources shares climbed Friday morning after the company said its has entered into an agreement with Hong Kong company China Sci-Tech Holdings, for the sale of its 100% interest in the L...
Cooper Energy expects flooding to impact operations
Cooper Energy said flooding in the Cooper Basin is expected to have some impact on its operations in South Australia due to roads being cut-off and oil fields being isolated.
Pharmaxis completes Phase II study
Pharmaxis announced the successful completion of a Phase IIa dose profiling study with its new anti-inflammatory agent ASM8 in patients with allergic asthma.
Leighton sub secures $463m rail contract
Leighton said its subsidiary, Leighton Asia, had been awarded a $463m contract to construct the Tse Uk Tsuen to Shek Yam section of the Guangzhou – Shenzhen – Hong Kong Express Rail Link (...
Oroton 1H profit up 24%
OrotonGroup reported a net profit of $15.4m for the six months ended 23 January 2010, an increase of 24% on the previous corresponding period.
Myer posts 38% hike in profit
Myer said its profit for the six months to 23 January 2010 jumped 38% to $115m, not including the costs of its recent IPO.
ANZ closer to Asian RBS acquisitions
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group said it has received regulatory approvals in the acquisition of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Singapore and Taiwan businesses.
Simpson retires as Aristocrat chairman
Aristocrat Leisure announced the impending retirement of three long standing directors in an update on its board succession planning and renewal programme.
Features
 | A Death Cross For Global Uranium StocksA recent sector report by Canadian stockbrokers Haywood Securities has revealed that price charts for many international uranium stocks carry the so-called "Cross of Death". Read More |
 | Chinese Bond Sales Raise ConcernOn Tuesday night the US Treasury auctioned US$44bn of two-year notes. Last night it auctioned US$42bn of five-year notes. Read More |
 | Brokers Reassess The BanksOver the last week we have seen first half earnings results from Commonwealth Bank ((CBA)) and Bendigo & Adelaide Bank ((BEN)). Read More |
 | More Than Greece In Europe's Basket CaseIf you've switched on a TV or picked up a paper lately, you'd know that the eurozone's public finances are under a lot of scrutiny these days. Read More |
 | Outrageous Claims And Trade Ideas For 2010Each year Saxo Bank, an online trading and investment specialist, offers up ten "outrageous claims" to provide investors with a chance to mentally stress test their portfolios. Read More |
 | The Global Commodities Outlook Continues To ImproveGlobal commodity markets have continued to perform far better than most would have dared to hope, starting to rise in the second quarter of last year on the back of Chinese stockpiling and then continuing the advance into the new calendar year on an increasing expectation of economic recovery, a declining US dollar, supply concerns and growing interest in commodities as an asset class and a hedge. Read More |
 | Permaculture MiningAustralians have become great recyclers over the past couple of decades, helping to do their bit to spare the over-exploitation of natural resources by dutifully placing their glass, paper, metal and plastic waste in the appropriate bin. Read More |
| A New Bottom For The Oil BarrelIt is certainly a different oil market this December than it was the last. By December last year crude oil was trading down in the US$30s/bl and investment markets around the world were dressed out in funeral attire. Read More |
 | There's No 'V' In 'Recovery', Says RoubiniSince stock markets began to factor in a turnaround in global economic fortunes from March this year, there has been an obsession with alphabet soup. Read More |
| SocGen Sounds The Alarm, AgainFrench bank Societe Generale has made the headlines many times in the past two years, but two particular occasions stand out. Read More |
 | China Locked In To Stimulus Despite GrowthChina released a raft of monthly economic data today which confirmed hopes (or might that be fears?) that China's economy is continuing to accelerate. Read More |
 | Get It IndiaThe biggest official (central bank) holder of gold in the world is the US, with around 8,000 tonnes. Read More |
 | No Standing Ovation For The BHP QuarterlyWhile BHP's first-quarter report drew a mostly positive response from Australian analysts, most also noted that copper, nickel and diamond production were below expectations. Read More |
| 'Black Diwali' Weighs On GoldDiwali is the first of the two annual Indian festival seasons, occurring either side of Christmas, in which Indians of all financial means are all but obliged to give gifts of gold as a sign of good luck and prosperity. Read More |
 | Black GoldAt the end of World War II, the major world economies signed the Bretton Woods Agreement, pegging all currencies to the US dollar as global reserve currency. Read More |
 | Whatever Happened To Those Toxic Assets?When the Obama Administration took over the reins in January, having been handed the ultimate hospital pass of a Global Financial Crisis, the first and most pressing emergency requirement in the eyes of new Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was to do something about so-called "toxic assets". Read More |
 | Fortescue Scores A Buy RatingFew stocks in the Australian market have witnessed such euphoric hysteria since listing as has Fortescue Metals ((FMG)), which one might describe as the Poseidon of the twenty-first century. Read More |
| No Guarantees For The Global RecoveryThere's little argument that some sort of recovery is under way and it may well appear to be a strong one over the next six months or so if government policy around the world continues to feed through. Read More |
 | Barrick Backs A Stronger Gold PriceWhen a gold miner is uncertain about the direction of the price of gold, it is typical for that miner to hedge its gold production. Read More |
 | Fear That China May RenegeIn the lead up to the Crash of '87, the Hong Kong stock market was booming along with every other stock market. Read More |
 | The End Of The WOW Factor?Stock analysts can't much like being given the job of analysing Woolworths. For the last few years it has simply not behaved as a stock of its nature should. Read More |
 | Assessing The Shanghai ShiversIn January 2006, the ASX 200 was at 4800 and the Shanghai Composite was at 1200 (I'm using a bit of rounding here). Read More |
 | Not Every Bank Bear Has TurnedIn late 2007 when the US credit crisis began to intensify, veteran bank analyst Brian Johnson was a lone voice amongst his peers. Read More |
 | Australian Covered Bonds: A New Subprime Crisis?The Australian Securitisation Forum has a proposal for the government on the table to address the problem of the mortgage securitisation market having been "closed" since the US subprime crisis turned the world upside-down. Read More |
| NickelIt is now appreciated that since the end of last year, China has implemented a rapid increase in commodity imports to take advantage of GFC prices. Read More |
 | Steel Market Output To Fall In 2009The steel market tends to be a good barometer of the health of the global economy given its use in a wide range of industries and applications, unfortunately, the steel manufacturing forecasts of industry consultant MEPS suggest the economic downturn has not yet fully run its course. Read More |
| The US Dollar's Downward Path"Over time, the USD remains a fundamentally weak currency. By end 2011 we forecast values of EUR/USD 1.50 [currently 1.39] and USD/JPY 90 [95]. The currencies of the strongest emerging economies, includingChina , as well as commodity-exporting countries are likely to appreciate significantly." Read More |
 | The Longest Journey Begins...It started last year and has continued into this year. Every other week some Chinese official, be they government or regulatory or central bank or whoever, comes out and suggests it is time to end the reign of the US dollar as reserve currency. Read More |
 | Micro Cap Rising Stars - CloverOne might be tempted to ask why a "rising star" of last year has not yet "risen" so to speak, but the truth is at the time of publication Clover shares were trading at 14.5c and today they are trading at 20c. Read More |
 | Micro Cap Rising Stars - eServGlobal"I recently climbed Kilimanjaro," a fellow attendee at this year's Microequities Rising Stars conference told me, "and our Tanzanian guides earned about A$20 a day. Read More |
 | There's Still Plenty Of Oil In OklahomaBack when James Dean was an oil baron (well, in character anyway), the cattle ranches of Texas and the cornfields of Oklahoma and Kansas saw mushrooms sprouting overnight in the form of ever-pumping oil derricks. Read More |
 | Australian Copper Backed By Chinese MuscleIt is a general market assumption that the area around the great Australian mining hub of Mt Isa in Queensland must by now have been drilled, scraped, poked and prodded often enough over the past 100 years that there couldn't possibly be any great mineral source left that no one has yet found. Read More |
 | Is Obama In Denial Over US Debt?"There continues to be strong demand for longer duration Treasuries," said Dallas Fed president and FOMC voting member Richard Fisher on Tuesday. The recent surge in the yield on the US 10-year bond, from 2.5% in March to 3.72% on Wednesday, brings this statement into question, however. But Fisher suggested inflation would remain "meek" in the US amid a tepid recovery. Read More |
 | Is It Too Early, Too Soon For James Hardie?As the US housing market has been in bad shape for some time it came as little surprise James Hardie (JHX) reported a modest FY09 profit of US$96.9 million, while as UBS notes it is also no surprise earnings in FY10 are likely to be even lower at somewhere around the US$60-$70 million level. Read More |
 | Life On The Clean SeasSo voracious is the Japanese appetite for Southern Bluefin tuna ("SBT") that the handful of licensed fishing families in South Australia have become multi-millionaires. Read More |
 | Has The Resource Sector Run Ahead of Itself?The last big market crash experienced in Australia was the Crash of 1987. We did not suffer meaningfully from the tech-wreck of 2000. While '87 now seems tame compared to what was going on in 2008, it was nevertheless a short, sharp shock of great significance and it ultimately heralded in the last deep recession of 1992. Read More |
 | CSL Not Only About Talecris PotentialOne Australian company that hasn't enjoyed the recent rally in equity markets is blood products group CSL ((CSL)), with Southern Cross Equities analyst Stuart Roberts suggesting market concerns over possible oversupply of IVIG and the regulatory outcome of the group's proposed acquisition of Talecris in the US have combined to weigh on the share price. Read More |
 | Britain 's Crippling DebtLondon was always a major world banking centre, and despite what New Yorkers might tell you, London remains the world's largest today. Now the GFC has brought Britain to its knees. Read More |
 | Copper: For And AgainstWhy is copper up 45% from its last low? Because China is restocking. China 's restocking cycle is a "strong seasonal event", note the analysts at BA-Merrill Lynch. China 's state authorities are regular buyers of copper in the first half of the year, at least until May. Typically the May holiday break in China signals the end of the buying cycle. Read More |
 | Gold: The Long And The Short Term Of ItLast night the European Central Bank surprised the market and cut its cash rate from 1.5% to only 1.25% rather than the 1.0% expected. Given the market had set itself long US dollar/short euro ahead of the decision, trades were reversed and the US dollar fell. Read More |
