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Strategies & Market Trends : Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ild who wrote (37347)	9/16/2005 2:14:41 AM
From: mishedlo	Respond to of 116555

US renews push on China´s yuan; Snow to stress need for greater movement - WSJ Friday, September 16, 2005 3:59:32 AM afxpress.com US renews push on China's yuan; Snow to stress need for greater movement - WSJ WASHINGTON (AFX) - US Treasury Department officials are disappointed that China's eight-week-old promise to let the yuan move with market forces has resulted in only a tiny increase in its exchange value and they are seeking further movement in the currency, the Wall Street Journal reported It said Treasury Secretary John Snow will emphasize the need for greater movement in the exchange rate at an expected meeting with Chinese finance minister Jin Renqing later this month Snow has invited Jin to meet during a gathering in Washington on Sept 23-24 of senior economic officials from the Group of Seven major industrialized nations. The Chinese have indicated they plan to attend, but have not yet formally accepted "The secretary will emphasize the need for the Chinese to demonstrate that the regime they've put in place will allow for greater flexibility in the yuan," the Journal quoted a Treasury official as saying. In essence, Snow plans to tell the Chinese that it is not enough to say that the yuan can rise; they must also allow it to do so in a significant way, the report said "There has to be movement," the official said, although the administration does not have a specific percentage figure in mind The yuan had been fixed at about 8.3 to the dollar for more than a decade when Chinese officials, facing intense US and European pressure, announced on July 21 that the currency would be immediately revalued by 2.1 pct and allowed to move in a way that would reflect the dictates of supply and demand. Since then, however, the yuan has barely budged and the currency has climbed a total of just 2.37 pct since the announcement, the Journal noted "We have been very supportive of the reforming of the exchange-rate regime, but implied in that support is taking them at their word that over time they'll achieve greater flexibility and an exchange rate that increasingly reflects underlying supply and demand," Timothy Adams, Treasury's undersecretary for international affairs, was quoted as saying in an interview. "We expect that to occur." The Treasury Department is due to release on October 15 a biannual report to Congress on international currencies, and Snow promised months ago that unless China implemented significant reforms the fall report would "likely" cite China for manipulating its currency to gain an edge in international trade. That would trigger a legal requirement that the US initiate formal negotiations with China over the currency question

To: ild who wrote (37347)	9/16/2005 2:26:39 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Pound falls as UK retail sales data for July are revised down afxpress.com LONDON (AFX) - The pound fell back slightly after it was revealed that UK retail sales in July was weaker than previously reported The numbers will re-ignite fears that the household spending may contract further and will not be able to prop up the overall economy if the Bank of England does not deliver more interest rate reductions Official figures from the Office for National Statistics showed that retail sales in August were unchanged from the previous month, just below market expectations of a 0.1 pct increase. More importantly, however, July sales were revised sharply lower as a result of new data. Instead of the initial estimate of a 0.3 pct decline, July sales is now reported to have slipped 0.6 pct from June while the annual reading was revised down to 1.3 pct from 1.8 pct previously The pound fell from levels around 1.8152 usd to 1.8125 usd after the news. The euro meanwhile rose to 0.6750 from around 0.6725 stg. "The pound had already been weakening ahead of the release so it may be questionable how much more ground it gives up immediately," said Daragh Maher at CALYON "After a run of generally neutral and sometimes hawkish data, news that the UK consumer is still suffering keeps alive the possibility of a rate cut during the fourth quarter of 2004, most likely in November," he added Still, the data should be seen against the backdrop of rising inflation -- as revealed by UK data yesterday showing that the annual CPI measure in August was at a series of 2.4 pct Elsewhere, the yen held steady on speculation that the Bank of Japan is considering an end to its ultra-easy zero-interest-rate monetary policy. Any such move will help prop up the yen. However, the yen's gains may prove fleeting if, as widely expected, the US Fed puts up interest rates by a quarter point to 3.75 pct next week. The yield differentials clearly favour the US currency The dollar may get more support later today when August inflation data are released. There is a risk that the numbers will come in in higher than expected because of the impact Hurricane Katrina had on various sectors The euro, meanwhile, was under light pressure as Germany heads for elections this weekend. Opinion polls suggest there will be no clear majority, shortening the odds of a weak coalition government which will struggle to push through much needed labour market reforms

To: ild who wrote (37347)	9/16/2005 2:31:56 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116555

China´s central bank warns against expectations of yuan appreciation - Xinhua Friday, September 16, 2005 4:51:09 AM afxpress.com China's central bank warns against expectations of yuan appreciation - Xinhua BEIJING (AFX) - China's central bank has warned against speculation that the yuan can only strengthen against the US dollar, state media reported Yi Gang, the assistant central bank governor, was quoted by the official Xinhua news agency as saying at a forum that speculators should consider possible risks to China's economic development, including substantial non-performing assets in the financial sector and shortages in coal, electricity and oil "All realities tell us there are risks ahead. We can expect a bright future for China's economic growth but at the same time we also need to pay attention to problems. Our expectation (on the value of the yuan) should not only go in one direction," Yi said After months of intense US pressure, China freed the yuan from an 11-year-old peg to the US dollar in July and replaced it with a trade-weighted basket of currencies, allowing the local unit to appreciate 2.1 pct The yuan ended yesterday at a post-revaluation high of 8.0887 to the US dollar. Statistics from China Foreign Exchange Trading Center showed that 363-day yuan forward is trading at 7.86 to the dollar today, a 2.83 pct appreciation from yesterday's close Yi also repeated the central bank's stance that it is fully confident it can maintain the basic stability of the yuan exchange rate, adding the current rate reflects the country's economic situation

To: ild who wrote (37347)	9/16/2005 10:55:49 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116555

From slapdasher on the FOOL Only recently have I begun to see "for sale by owner" and "for rent" signs littering the streets of Manchester, Nashua, and Exeter, NH. (I haven't checked Portsmouth, but I doubt it's any different.) When you call on the "for rents," the brokers are testy and explain that it's an owner in dire straits who will only offer a month-to-month lease, or only 3 months, or you can rent for a few months but you must agree to buy it. It looks utterly dire. As far as business activity goes, the advertising market has dried up considerably in the Boston area. The NE division of a major cable company is not making its numbers, and hasn't been for a few months now, and word has it that their reps are having much difficulty finding new business....