Hollingsworth Daily Post

• A share sale at Agricultural Bank of China - set to be the world's biggest initial public offering (IPO) - has begun in Hong Kong.


• Global stock markets have fallen sharply amid concerns over European banks and the health of the global economy.


• Members of Congress are revising an agreement on reform of the US financial sector after Republicans objected to a tax on large financial institutions.


• The US Supreme Court has given Nigerian families the green light to sue the drug company Pfizer over the use of a new antibiotic on their children.


• US electric car maker Tesla Motors has seen its shares rise by more than 40% on their first day of trading.


• Three men accused of running what is alleged to be the UK's largest Ponzi scheme have been ordered to pay £115m to the financial regulator.


• Google has announced a "new approach" in its ongoing battle with China over censorship.

BBC Business News 30th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Leaders at the G20 summit in Canada have agreed to cut national budget deficits while endeavouring to promote economic growth.


• Britain and the US have agreed that they want a "strong and stable" BP, as the oil company faces intense pressure over the Gulf of Mexico oil leak.


• Tens of thousands of demonstrators in Taiwan have been venting their anger at a trade deal with China, to be signed on Tuesday.


• Romania plans to raise value-added tax (VAT) to 24% in an effort to curb the country's deficit, the prime minister has said.


• The US Congress has all but finalised the biggest reform of US financial regulation since the Great Depression.


• The US economy grew at an annual rate of 2.7% in the first three months of 2010, slower than previously estimated.


• The Indian government has opted to scrap its subsidy of petrol prices in an effort to cut its budget deficit.


• Italians are taking part in a general strike organised by the country's largest trade union to protest against government austerity measures.

BBC Business News 28th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

Weekly Market Summary
by Raymond Chatlani

Last Sunday, China announced that it would be more flexible in its currency exchange rate which cheered investors as they now expect the Yuan to start to appreciate. This will boost chinese domestic demand as imports into China would now be cheaper. Consequently, all markets rose significantly at the start of the week. Commodities especially did very well as investors now expect the chinese to import more raw materials and grains.

On Monday US data on existing home sales were weaker than expected. On Tuesday Us data showed that sales of new homes in the world's largest economy had fallen by more than expected to a record low. Consequently, markets went down on Tuesday & Wednesday.

This week in Australia Julia Gillard took over as prime Minister from Kevin Rudd as leader of the Labour party. Investors became more positive on commodities as they felt that the new prime minister would be more flexible in negotiating the new 40% super profits on Australian mining companies. BHP Billiton also suspended its advertising campaign against the mining tax as Gillard confirmed that she would seek consenus. On Thursday the Federal Reserve Bank left interest rates unchanged and confirmed that the US economic recovery is still very fragile.

Thursday and Friday were down days for equities as investors are focusing on the G8 meeting on Friday and the weekend meeting of the G20 over the weekend in Toronto, Canada. World leaders are differing on how to nurture a global recovery. While the US insists that stimulus efforts should continue since the global economy is still fragile, Britain, Germany, france and Japan have all unveiled deficit cutting plans. Hopefully, during their weekend meeting, world leaders may come to a compromise of cutting their costs only in areas that will not affect growth. Investors perception of whether a comprise is reached is key to how markets can be expected to react next week.

All in all, equities and commodities were down. Unless world leaders bridge the gap between their differences as to how to foster growth in their economies during their summit, we may face another bad week

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Europe must focus on growth as well as cutting spending to reduce national deficits, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has said.


• Mining companies in Australia have expressed hope of reopening discussions about a controversial mining tax with the country's new prime minister.


• A US appeals court has been told to look again at the convictions of Conrad Black, the newspaper tycoon currently serving a prison sentence for fraud.


• German airline Lufthansa, Europe's largest, has settled a lengthy dispute with pilots union Vereinigung Cockpit.


• The prosecutor in the trial of Jerome Kerviel has called for the former Societe Generale trader to spend four years in prison, if convicted.


• EU transport ministers have signed a second "open skies" agreement with the US at a meeting in Luxembourg.


• French insurer Axa has agreed the sale of its UK life assurance business to buyout fund Resolution for £2.75bn.

BBC Business News 25th June 2010

Hollingsworth Weekly Review

Weekly review for week ending 18th June 2010

by Raymond Chatlani Investment Analyst


On Monday, France announced a three-year budget plan aimed at bringing France's budget deficit down to 3% of GDP by 2013. This would be done by cutting the public deficit by 100 million Euro over the next 4 years. Also EU industrial production grew by 0.8% over the quarter. After european stockmarkets closed up, US markets and latin american indices lost all their gains by the end of their session as Greek debt was downgraded to junk status by Moody's.

On Wednesday, US data on showed that housing starts fell in May to their lowest level in five months.This shows that the USA economic recovery is modest and uneven.

On Thursday, the US Government reported that new claims for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly last week. This had a positive effect on world markets.

With very little news this week, investors focused mainly on Europe's debt problems especially Spain. Fears of potential banks' losses on european loans, particularly from Spain's collapsed housing boom which sent the Spanish Government's borrowing costs to a record high. Thursday's Spanish Government's bond issue was successful and was oversubscribed. This calmed investors and stockmarkets recovered towards the end of the week. Consequently gold was also a beneficiary this week as investors seeked safe havens due to both the greek debt downgrade and fears of a failed Spanish bond auction. Gold hit a new high today of $1,260 an ounce.

Overall markets were positive again this week. Asian markets are still booming, the US economy is growing slowly and unevenly and it seems that there will hardly be any growth in Europe. There is still no clear trend as to whether we are still in a bull market rally.

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• A US federal court judge has blocked President Barack Obama's six-month moratorium on deep water oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.


• The toughest Budget package of spending cuts and tax increases in a generation means the UK "can look to a brighter future", George Osborne has said.


• The Brazilian state-run oil producer, Petrobras, has delayed by two months one of the world's largest planned share offerings.


• British Airways cabin crew will be balloted on fresh strikes if there is no progress towards a solution by Tuesday, the Unite union has said.


• Banks operating in the UK will be hit with a levy in a move set to raise more than £8bn over four years, the chancellor has announced.


• US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has warned that the country's economy "is still going through an incredibly difficult period".


• Sales of previously-owned US homes fell unexpectedly in May despite tax credits designed to encourage homebuyers, figures suggest.

BBC Business News 23rd June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

Here are the key points of Chancellor George Osborne's first Budget, delivered on 22 June, 2010:

TAX

VAT:
Rate will rise from 17.5% to 20% from January 4, 2011.
Personal income tax allowance: To be increased by £1,000 in April to £7,475 - worth £170 a year to basic rate taxpayers. It is expected that 880,000 of the lowest-paid will be taken out of income tax altogether.

Council tax:
Could be frozen for one year from April 2011 in England, but extra funds will only be offered to councils which keep their own costs down. Worth about £35 per household.

Capital Gains Tax:
To rise from 18% to 28% from midnight for higher rate taxpayers. The "entrepreneurs relief" rate of 10% on the first £2m of gains will be extended to the first £5m.
A 50p a month "landline tax" to fund the rollout of fast broadband will be scrapped - instead the government will support private investment, partly funded by the digital switchover under-spend within the TV licence fee.
The balance of spending cuts to tax rises would be 77% to 23%.

CIGARETTES, ALCOHOL AND FUEL
No increases this time round. Labour's plan to increase the duty on cider by 10% above inflation will be scrapped from July.

BENEFITS

Child benefit: Frozen for the next three years.

Tax credits: Reduced for families earning over £40,000 next year. But low income families will get more Child Tax Credit - the amount per child will rise by £150 above the rate of inflation next year - at an annual cost of £2bn.

Housing benefit: New maximum limit of £400 a week for properties with more than three bedrooms, £250 a week for a one-bedroom flat, £290 for a two-bedroom property and £340 for a three-bed property, to save £1.8bn a year by the end of the Parliament.

Unemployed people will see their Housing Benefit cut by 10%, after 12 months of claiming Jobseekers Allowance from April 2013.

It will also be cut for people of working age who are in larger homes than their family size warrants but, from April 2011, disabled claimants who do not have a resident carer will be able to claim for an extra bedroom.
Health in pregnancy grant to be abolished from April 2011, the Sure Start maternity grant will be restricted to the first child.
Lone parents will be expected to look for work when their youngest child goes to school.
Excluding the state pension and pension credit, from 2011 benefits, tax credits and public service pensions will rise in line with the Consumer Price Index, rather than the, generally higher, Retail Price Index, saving over £6 billion a year by the end of the Parliament.
The government will introduce a medical assessment for Disability Living Allowance from 2013 for new and existing claimants.
The welfare shake-up will save £11bn by 2014/15.

PUBLIC SECTOR PAY
Public sector workers face a two-year pay freeze if they earn over £21,000. Those earning less £21,000 will get a flat pay-rise worth £250 in both years.
Armed services personnel in Afghanistan will see their operational allowance doubled to £4,800 - as announced by David Cameron two weeks ago.

PENSIONS
The basic state pension will be linked to earnings from April 2011, with the pension guaranteed to rise in line with earnings, prices or 2.5%, whichever is the greater.
The government will accelerate the increase in state pension age to 66 - a "call for evidence" will be made later this week.
The government will also consult on phasing out the default retirement age - to ensure those who want to work past 65 are able to do so.
Former Labour Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton to review public sector pensions, ahead of the autumn spending review.

BUSINESS
From April 2011, the threshold at which employers start to pay National Insurance will rise by the rate of inflation plus £21 per week.
Corporation Tax will be cut next year to 27%, and by 1% annually for the next three years, until it reaches 24%.
The small companies' tax rate will be cut to 20%.
Tax relief for the video games industry will be scrapped.

BANKS
A bank levy will be introduced, which will apply to the balance sheets of UK banks and building societies and the UK operations of foreign banks from January 2011. But smaller banks will not have to pay. It is expected to raise over £2bn a year.

ENVIRONMENT
The government will "explore changes to the aviation tax system" such as switching from a per-passenger to a per-plane levy. It will consult on major changes.
Government looking at reforming the climate change levy "to provide more certainty and support to the carbon price". Proposals to be published in the autumn.
The Office for Budget Responsibility will assess the effect of oil price fluctuations on the public finances over the summer, before the government looks at options for a "fair fuel stabiliser" - which would see fuel duty fall when prices go up, and vice versa.
Case for rural fuel duty discount is under consideration.

REGIONS
White Paper to be published on tackling regional economic differences in Britain later in the summer, followed by a paper on rebalancing the economy of Northern Ireland.
The upgrade of the Tyne and Wear Metro, extension of the Manchester Metrolink, redevelopment of Birmingham New Street station and improvements to the rail lines to Sheffield and between Liverpool and Leeds will go ahead.
A Regional Growth Fund will be created to help fund regional capital projects over two years.
People setting up new businesses outside London, the South East and the east of England will be exempt from £5,000 of National Insurance payments for the first 10 workers.

UK ECONOMY
Growth forecast revised down from 2.6% to 2.3% in 2011.
The economy is predicted to grow by 1.2 % this year, 2.3% next year, 2.8% in 2012, 2.9% in 2013 and 2.7% in both 2014 and in 2015.
Debt to peak in 2013/14 at 70% of GDP.
Unemployment is forecast to peak this year at 8.1% and then fall for each of the next four years, to reach 6.1% in 2015.
Consumer price inflation is expected to reach 2.7% by the end of 2010 before "returning to target in the medium term". The inflation target remains at 2%, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index.
The UK is set to miss the previous government's "golden rule" - of borrowing only to invest over the economic cycle - in the current cycle by £485bn.

BORROWING
Underlying current budget deficit should be "in balance" by 2015/16.
Public sector net borrowing will be £149bn this year, £116bn next year, £89bn in 2012-13 and £60bn in 2013-14.
By 2014-15 borrowing to reach £37bn, falling to £20bn in 2015-16.

SPENDING
Mr Osborne said the state now accounted for "almost half" of all national income which was "completely unsustainable".
Average real terms budget cuts of 25% over four years - except for health and international aid. Departmental cuts amount to £17bn by 2014-15.
But current expenditure to rise from £637bn in 2010-11 to £711bn in 2015-16 - partly due to rising debt interest payments.
No further reductions in capital spending totals but there will be "careful choices" about how the money was spent. Projects with "a significant economic return to the country" would be prioritised.

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Stock markets and Asian currencies have risen after weekend comments by China's central bank about its yuan policy.


• A Deepwater Horizon rig worker has told the BBC that he identified a leak in the oil rig's safety equipment weeks before the explosion.


• Russia's state-controlled gas monopoly Gazprom has started to cut supplies to neighbour Belarus over its debt after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ordered the reduction.


• Norway's Acergy has announced an acquisition that will create a major new oil and gas engineering firm.


• The company will buy out rival Subsea 7, creating a company of 12,000 employees and worth $5.4bn (£3.6bn).


• Qatar and Kuwait are said to be lining up to invest $3.6bn (£2.4bn) in the flotation of the Agricultural Bank of China.


• Fears are growing for the safety of several Australian mining executives whose plane has gone missing flying from Cameroon to Republic of Congo.


• A US food innovation firmthat used to be part of chemicals giant ICI has been sold in a $1.3bn (£877m) deal.Britain is "on the road to ruin" unless action is taken in the Budget on Tuesday to cut the deficit, Chancellor George Osborne has told the BBC.

BBC Business News 21st June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• BP chief executive Tony Hayward has been told by an angry US Congressional panel his firm ignored dangers when drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.


• The World Bank has reiterated its view that the Chinese government should allow the yuan to strengthen against other international currencies.


• EU leaders have agreed to publish "stress tests" of banks next month to show investors where any potential risks lie.


• Internet company AOL has sold Bebo, the social networking site it bought two years ago for $850m (then £417m).


• US consumer prices fell for a second straight month in May, after energy prices dropped sharply.


• Japanese electronic groups Toshiba and Fujitsu have announced their intention to merge their mobile phone businesses in October this year.


• UK retail sales rose strongly in May, with analysts citing the World Cup as the main reason for the pick-up.

BBC Business News 18th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Fortress's $5 Billion Private-Equity Loss Haunts Edens as Black Has Gain Fortress Investment Group LLC has $5 billion in unrealized losses from private-equity funds started since 2005, the beginning of a two-year buyout boom, more than its largest New York rivals combined.


• Google Wi-Fi Data Collection Discussed by Law Enforcement in 30 States Google Inc.’s collection of data via Wi-Fi networks was the subject of a conference call among law enforcement officials from 30 U.S. states, according to Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.


• Cosan Trades Like Investment Grade After `Game Changer' Accord With Shell Cosan SA Industria & Comercio’s bonds are trading like investment-grade assets on speculation the world’s largest sugar-cane processor will complete a $12 billion joint venture with Royal Dutch Shell Plc.


• Cipla Chairman Hamied Targets $19 Billion-a-Year Roche, Amgen Treatments Cipla Ltd., the Indian drugmaker that built a $1 billion business making generic HIV treatments, aims to sell copies of Roche Holding AG’s and Amgen Inc.’s best- selling biotechnology medicines with a partner in China.


• India Microfinance Evokes Risk of Subprime in the East as SKS Prepares IPO Savita Ramesh Rathore stood at the door to her dimly lit workshop in Mumbai’s Dharavi slum, filled floor-to-ceiling with bundles of old clothes, and tallied up the cost of her son’s wedding last year.


• UBS May Sidestep Swiss `Game of Chicken' as Lawmakers Vote on U.S. Treaty UBS AG may escape a “game of chicken” played by Swiss lawmakers as the price of failure to back a tax treaty with the U.S. would be too high: the bank’s American operations and the country’s export industry.


• New York Fed's Enhanced Power May Come at Expense of Reduced Independence The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which carried out central-bank rescues of money markets and Wall Street firms, is poised to have its powers expanded even more -- at the risk of reduced independence.


• Portugal Telecom's Bava Makes Drive for `Last Sweetener' From Telefonica Portugal Telecom SGPS SA Chief Executive Officer Zeinal Bava is stepping up the fight to force his counterpart at Telefonica SA, Cesar Alierta, to put more money on the table for control of their Brazilian venture.


• McLaren Says Supercar Demand Buoyed by Europe as Austerity Sentiment Fades McLaren Group said Europe will provide at least half the buyers for its 200-mile-per-hour, Ferrari-rivaling MP4-12C supercar as demand for luxury autos rebounds from last year’s recession.


• Nokia's Delay on `Shiny Things' Leaves It Last in Line for Apps Developers As Nokia Oyj prepares to introduce its latest flagship smartphone, developer Jan Ole Suhr says he knows why the brains behind addictive applications are shunning the Finnish company.

Bloomberg Daily News 16th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• India Microfinance Evokes Risk of Subprime in the East as SKS Prepares IPO Savita Ramesh Rathore stood at the door to her dimly lit workshop in Mumbai’s Dharavi slum, filled floor-to-ceiling with bundles of old clothes, and tallied up the cost of her son’s wedding last year.


• UBS May Sidestep Swiss `Game of Chicken' as Lawmakers Vote on U.S. Treaty UBS AG may escape a “game of chicken” played by Swiss lawmakers as the price of failure to back a tax treaty with the U.S. would be too high: the bank’s American operations and the country’s export industry.


• New York Fed's Enhanced Power May Come at Expense of Reduced Independence The Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which carried out central-bank rescues of money markets and Wall Street firms, is poised to have its powers expanded even more -- at the risk of reduced independence.


• Portugal Telecom's Bava Makes Drive for `Last Sweetener' From Telefonica Portugal Telecom SGPS SA Chief Executive Officer Zeinal Bava is stepping up the fight to force his counterpart at Telefonica SA, Cesar Alierta, to put more money on the table for control of their Brazilian venture.


• Fannie-Freddie Fix Expands to $160 Billion With Worst Case at $1 Trillion The cost of fixing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage companies that last year bought or guaranteed three-quarters of all U.S. home loans, will be at least $160 billion and could grow to as much as $1 trillion after the biggest bailout in American history.


• Nokia's Delay on `Shiny Things' Leaves It Last in Line for Apps Developers As Nokia Oyj prepares to introduce its latest flagship smartphone, developer Jan Ole Suhr says he knows why the brains behind addictive applications are shunning the Finnish company.


• Apple Under Pressure to Ease Software Limits as Jobs's Influence Increases Apple Inc., under growing scrutiny from antitrust regulators, may have to loosen restrictions on software developers and music labels to avoid legal wrangling with the government and prevent damage to how its brand is perceived by the public, lawyers and analysts said.


• KKR May Acquire $400 Million Stake in Texas Shale Formation From Hilcorp KKR & Co., the buyout firm run by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, may purchase about $400 million of Texas shale assets from Hilcorp Energy Co., two people with direct knowledge of the talks said.


• Genting `Aggressively' Seeks U.S. Casino Stakes With $1.7 Billion of Cash Genting Malaysia Bhd., the casino owner that parlayed a single hilltop site near Kuala Lumpur into gambling resorts in Singapore, the Philippines and the U.K., is now looking for investments in the U.S.

Bloomberg Daily News 15th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Fannie-Freddie Fix Expands to $160 Billion With Worst Case at $1 Trillion The cost of fixing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage companies that last year bought or guaranteed three-quarters of all U.S. home loans, will be at least $160 billion and could grow to as much as $1 trillion after the biggest bailout in American history.


• Nokia's Delay on `Shiny Things' Leaves It Last in Line for Apps Developers As Nokia Oyj prepares to introduce its latest flagship smartphone, developer Jan Ole Suhr says he knows why the brains behind addictive applications are shunning the Finnish company.


• Apple Under Pressure to Ease Software Limits as Jobs's Influence Increases Apple Inc., under growing scrutiny from antitrust regulators, may have to loosen restrictions on software developers and music labels to avoid legal wrangling with the government and prevent damage to how its brand is perceived by the public, lawyers and analysts said.


• KKR May Acquire $400 Million Stake in Texas Shale Formation From Hilcorp KKR & Co., the buyout firm run by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, may purchase about $400 million of Texas shale assets from Hilcorp Energy Co., two people with direct knowledge of the talks said.


• Genting `Aggressively' Seeks U.S. Casino Stakes With $1.7 Billion of Cash Genting Malaysia Bhd., the casino owner that parlayed a single hilltop site near Kuala Lumpur into gambling resorts in Singapore, the Philippines and the U.K., is now looking for investments in the U.S.


• Europe's Banks May Face Second Funding Squeeze Amid Sovereign-Debt Crisis European banks at risk of writedowns from the sovereign debt crisis face a funding squeeze that may depress earnings, curb lending and imperil economic recovery in the region.


• BP Spill Is `Opportunity in Disguise' for Rig Makers Keppel, Samsung Heavy Heightened U.S. scrutiny of offshore drilling after the BP Plc spill, the worst in the nation’s history, may spur oil companies to replace aging rigs with new platforms made in South Korea and Singapore.


• Tanker Rates Poised to Surge 43% With China Oil Shipping Buoying Frontline Supertanker rates are poised to surge to a two-year high by December as China’s demand for oil sends ships the equivalent of 11 extra times around the globe in a month.


• Lehman Probe Lesson: Avoid `Big Trouble' by Shunning `Stupid' E-Mail Terms “Just between us,” it may be “stupid” to use certain words in e-mail to “discuss” the “big trouble” you might face if you’re ever investigated for financial wrongdoing or a subsequent cover-up.


• Builders Rush to Finish Houses as Deadline for U.S. Buyer Tax Credit Loom Construction crews for LGI Homes begin work at 4 a.m., pouring concrete slabs for houses before the heat of a Texas day. They don’t stop until 6 p.m., and usually work six days a week.


• Worst Locust Plague in Two Decades Threatens Crops in Australia's Victoria The worst locust plague in more than two decades is threatening to strike Australia, the world’s fourth-largest wheat exporter, after rainfall boosted egg-laying by the insects in major crop growing regions.


• Bernanke Student Borrows Page From Fischer as Protege Writing Fed Policies William English took up fencing as a sophomore at Yale University in 1980, practicing a sport that has been likened to “physical chess” for its strategy and precision.

Bloomberg Daily News 14th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Banks Face Fraud From Short Sales as U.S. Home `Flopping' Schemes Spread Two Connecticut real estate agents found a way to profit in the U.S. housing bust: Buy low, sell fast. Their tactic was also illegal.


• BP Show of Support May Fail to Save Chief Hayward as Obama Goes on Attack On the night of June 7, a group including Vittorio Colao, head of telecom company Vodafone Plc, Martin Sorrell, chief of advertising firm WPP Plc, and John Sawers, director-general of the intelligence agency MI6, gathered on the sixth floor of BP Plc’s London headquarters to show support for Tony Hayward, the company’s beleaguered chief executive officer.


• Mary Landry Sees Game Changer as Gulf Oil Spill Awaits Atlantic Hurricanes Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary E. Landry was up early on Saturday, April 24, preparing to brief news reporters on the deadly explosion at the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig when BP Plc called with bad news: The well was leaking oil into the Gulf of Mexico, 5,000 feet below the surface.


• Bearded Women Challenge French `Boys Club' Corporate Boardrooms in Paris A group of women wearing fake beards stormed the podium at Veolia Environnement SA’s shareholders’ meeting in Paris last month, challenging Chairman Henri Proglio over the gender makeup of his overwhelmingly masculine board.


• Soccer World Cup Delivers Justice for Apartheid League in Political Prison For Lizo Sitoto, the arrival of the soccer World Cup in South Africa is another justice for the former political prisoners who nurtured the sport there.


• Liechtenstein Offers Tax Evaders Way to Come Clean as Swiss Guard Secrecy Liechtenstein is luring wealthy Britons by offering them the chance to “come clean” on unpaid taxes, while lawmakers in neighboring Switzerland attempt to block the handover of suspected tax evaders to U.S. authorities.


• Boaz Weinstein Profits From Credit Market Distress Handing Paulson Losses The biggest swings in credit markets since 2008 are boosting demand for hedge funds that avoid bets on which way the economy is headed.


• GM, Ford to Accelerate Growth at Mexico Plants Where Workers Get $26 a Day Mexico’s share of North American auto production may rise at a quicker pace as General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Group LLC seek out workers making less than 10 percent of what their U.S. counterparts earn.


• Bankers Challenging Rules in Vienna Find an Ally in Sovereign Debt Crisis Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Josef Ackermann and HSBC Holdings Plc Chairman Stephen Green are among bankers with a new ally in their tug of war with politicians over stricter rules: Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis.


• Iran Opposition Struggles as Nuclear Sanctions Wrangle Boosts Ahmadinejad A year after hundreds of thousands of Iranians poured onto the streets to protest President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election, the opposition has been almost silenced.


• Cathay Pacific, Air France Embrace Airbags Ahead of Tighter Safety Rules Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. and Air France-KLM Group have begun introducing seatbelt-mounted airbags in their economy-class cabins as authorities tighten regulations aimed at reducing the risk of fatalities in plane crashes.


• SAC's Cohen Expands Trading Team as Hedge-Fund Founders Groom Successors Steven A. Cohen, the 53-year-old founder of SAC Capital Advisors LLP, picked four of his best people earlier this year to help select investments for the $2 billion he personally oversees at the hedge-fund firm.


• Medvedev Pursues Russian Home-Ownership `Dream' to Break With Soviet Past President Dmitry Medvedev’s government has acquired almost 2.5 million acres, an area larger than Cyprus, to promote construction of single-family homes and move Russians out of Soviet-style apartment blocks, the official in charge of the effort said.


• Women Prefer Men Holding Government Bonds, Japan Finance Ministry Ad Says Japanese women are seeking men who invest in government bonds, according to an advertisement being run by the Ministry of Finance.


• Banks in `Downward Spiral' Buying Capital in CDOs Distrusted by Regulators U.S. banks are fighting to preserve the use of securities that help them appear better capitalized, even as their investments in each others’ notes perpetuate what one regulator calls a “downward spiral” of losses.

Bloomberg Daily News 11th June 2010

Fixed rate short term returns in Sterling and Euro

Fixed rate, short term returns in Sterling and Euro


A dilemma for savers is often the length of time to commit funds in return for a healthy rate of interest. With short-term interest rates so low, savers often have to lock capital away for 2-3 years in order to obtain a rate of interest over 3-4 per cent. Wouldn’t it be good therefore to commit to only a one year term and receive an interest rate well above the rates offered by the banks ? A solution could be in Australia.

The Australia Story – did you know ?

AAA sovereign rated with political stability
World’s largest economic resources of commodities
Third largest number of high networth individuals in the region
Four of the world’s nine AA rated banks


As recently reported by Bloomberg, "Australia is one of the few nations to have skirted the global recession.” In its article dated 28 January 2010, Australia’s economy is forecast by its central bank to further strengthen in 2010. Five consecutive interest rate rises implemented by the RBA since October 2009 demonstrates widespread consumer and business confidence in Australia. It is one of the first advanced economies in the world to begin lifting rates following the financial crisis.


Residential Property in Australia

Forecasters dubbed 2009 as the year that Australian house prices would fall, with some economists predicting declines of up to 40 per cent across the property sector. That did not happen. In fact, 2009 was one of the strongest
years on record for national house price growth, a very sharp turnaround from the declines initially predicted. Decreasing interest rates and the first homeowner grant stimulated the first homebuyer sector to mid 2009. Rising interest rates and price increases should put pressure on housing affordability, which in turn should result in a greater level of price stability from mid 2010 onwards.

The top end of Australia’s residential markets also strengthened during 2009. The market for more expensive properties hit rock bottom in early 2009 along with share prices, however the recovery since then has been remarkable. In most cities in Australia, the top end of the market has now recovered all losses experienced in 2008 and early 2009, and subsequently moved to historic highs.

Upsizers and young Australians leaving home account for approximately 60,000 of new households per annum, while overseas migrants account for around 110,000 new households. There are approximately 140,000 new dwellings approved or commenced each year, leaving a shortfall of 30,000 houses/units required to cope with demand. This alone will ensure that the property market will continue to increase in value. Investor activity in the lower and mid range price points is already increasing, along with activity from those upgraders who sold into a very strong first home buyer market before September.

The country is also experiencing historically strong population growth. More than 285,000 migrants arrived into Australia in 2009, and a ‘baby boom’ has provided a natural increase rate of 0.74 per cent of the population. Migrants require immediate accommodation, and the present generation is looking to upsize their existing accommodation to cope with the new addition to the family.


Fixed rate returns on Property Assets

With a booming property market and a lack of available credit in Australia’s banking sector means positive ongoing opportunities for alternative lenders to the banks. Specialist commercial lending funds now exist that meet the shortfall of supply of commercial loans to developers of property.

In turn, investors effectively become the lenders and with such high margins above bank savings rates, very attractive returns are available to investors looking to commit capital for 12 month terms.

Present fixed rate returns are 7 per cent in sterling and 6 per cent in euro for one year. At the end of the term, investors receive the fixed rate of interest plus original capital with the option to roll over the capital for a further 12 months.

If you believe in the Australia story then you will conclude that the above rates are factual and achievable. One such fund that we recommend has been offering such investments for the last eight years and with a 100 per cent success rate.

Finally, did you know that the kangaroo and emu, Australia’s national animal emblems are the only animals on earth that cannot walk backwards !



Mark Hollingsworth, Director, Hollingsworth International Financial Services Ltd
Tel: +357 99066840, +356 21316298
e-mail: info@hollingsworth-int.com
Website: www.hollingsworth.eu.com
Authorised by the Malta Financial Services Authority to provide investment services, license IS/32457

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Bankers Challenging Rules in Vienna Find an Ally in Sovereign Debt Crisis Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Josef Ackermann and HSBC Holdings Plc Chairman Stephen Green are among bankers with a new ally in their tug of war with politicians over stricter rules: Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis.


• Women Prefer Men Holding Government Bonds, Japan Finance Ministry Ad Says Japanese women are seeking men who invest in government bonds, according to an advertisement being run by the Ministry of Finance.


• Banks in `Downward Spiral' Buying Capital in CDOs Distrusted by Regulators U.S. banks are fighting to preserve the use of securities that help them appear better capitalized, even as their investments in each others’ notes perpetuate what one regulator calls a “downward spiral” of losses.


• Fayyad Crosses Israel With Boycott of Settler Goods From Wine to Scrubpads Palestinian inspectors were on the hunt for goods in West Bank stores made in Israeli settlements, and metal scouring pads with no labeled place of origin caught their attention.


• Lampert May Avoid Obama Tax Increase With $829 Million Hedge Fund Payout Billionaire Edward Lampert may have found a way to shield himself from millions of dollars in taxes under legislation that would raise levies on profits at private- equity firms.


• `Extremely Active' Atlantic Hurricane Season Set to Test Catastrophe Bonds As the U.S. enters this year’s hurricane season, the market for catastrophe bonds may face its biggest test since the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008 brought sales to a six-month standstill.


• Trichet Sees Compass of Life Pointing to Euro at Center of European Unity Jean-Claude Trichet used a simple chart to convince European leaders the euro was in grave danger.


• Garcia's Booming Peru Economy May Not Help Defeat Chavez-Like Challenger When Alan Garcia’s first term as president of Peru ended in 1990, the economy had shrunk by 10 percent, inflation was raging at 7,000 percent, and half the population lived in government-declared emergency zones where Maoist guerrillas were active.


• Aluminum's Price `Slingshot' to Boost Earnings for Rio Tinto, Rusal, Alcoa Rio Tinto Group’s $38 billion takeover of aluminum maker Alcan Inc. in 2007 is looking more like a money spinner for the world’s third-biggest mining company as forecasts show prices for the metal will increase.


• EDF May Get Limited Boost From Power Law as French Legislators Cap Prices Electricite de France SA investors who bought into the prospect that easing the government’s grip on the French power market would be a boon to the former monopoly may end up disappointed.

Bloomberg Daily News 9th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Trichet Sees Compass of Life Pointing to Euro at Center of European Unity Jean-Claude Trichet used a simple chart to convince European leaders the euro was in grave danger.


• Banks in `Downward Spiral' Buying Capital in CDOs Distrusted by Regulators U.S. banks are fighting to preserve the use of securities that help them appear better capitalized, even as their investments in each others’ notes perpetuate what one regulator calls a “downward spiral” of losses.


• Emirates Said to Boost A380 Superjumbo Fleet as Demand Returns Emirates Airline, the biggest customer for the Airbus SAS A380 superjumbo, is poised to order more of the world’s largest passenger jet to expand Dubai as a global travel hub, two people with knowledge of the accord said.


• Boeing Unlikely to Go Ahead Building 787-3 Variant Boeing Co. is unlikely to go ahead with the 787-3 variant of its new Dreamliner model, a company executive said.


• Bear Options at Record as Wien Says Stocks to Rally Confidence in stocks is sinking to record lows in the options market even with the U.S. economy poised for its fastest growth in six years, a sign to Blackstone Group LP’s Byron Wien that it’s time to buy.


• Tech Lifts San Francisco Home Prices as Ocean View Gets 26 Bids Rebounding technology stocks and limited housing supply are lifting San Francisco real estate as buyers compete for properties and drive up prices.


• Wal-Mart Sees World Cup Sales Boom in Countries Reaching Final Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which has outlets in eight of the 32 countries competing in the soccer World Cup, anticipates sales will boom in those markets should their teams reach next month’s final match.


• Baseball's `Chosen One' Harper May Top Teixeira's $9.5 Million One day before pitching prospect Stephen Strasburg debuts for the Washington Nationals, the team might welcome another equally hyped player aiming for a record- breaking contract.


• Hungary Rejects Greek Comparison in Reversal After Market Scare Hungary’s government reversed course over the weekend, saying there was no danger of default after it spent two days telling the world the nation was at risk of a Greece-like crisis.


• All Nippon Plans First 787 Overseas Flights in March All Nippon Airways Co., the first customer of Boeing Co.’s 787 Dreamliner, plans to start flying the aircraft overseas in March, increasing international operations while rival Japan Airlines Corp. slashes routes.


• P&G's Consumer Changes to He From She With Men's Thermal Scrubs After spending decades luring women with products such as Olay skin cream, Procter & Gamble Co. is about to tell men they need pampering too.


• Foster vs Foster's Showdown Hits Australia Goliath With Losses Adam Foster’s annual wine production of 2,500 cases is a fraction of the sales of Foster’s Group Ltd., the world’s second-largest producer. Yet it’s a factor in breaking up the rival he shares a name with.


• Sony Sags, GE Sees Opening in Pakistan Energy Crisis In the glare of energy-saving light bulbs, Pakistani men jammed sidewalks in one of the country’s biggest electronics markets last week, ogling televisions and home theater systems.


• New Orleans Judge Sells Investments to Avoid Oil Spill Conflict A New Orleans federal judge presiding over lawsuits related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill said he sold his investment in companies linked to the disaster to avoid any appearance he might be biased.


• U.S.'s $13 Trillion Debt Poised to Overtake GDP: Chart of Day President Barack Obama is poised to increase the U.S. debt to a level that exceeds the value of the nation’s annual economic output, a step toward what Bill Gross called a “debt super cycle.”

Bloomberg Daily News 8th June 2010

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Sony Sags, GE Sees Opening in Pakistan Energy Crisis In the glare of energy-saving light bulbs, Pakistani men jammed sidewalks in one of the country’s biggest electronics markets last week, ogling televisions and home theater systems.


• Netanyahu Calls Flotilla Raid Criticism Hypocrisy Amid Probe Calls Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said criticism of Israel’s raid against a Gaza Strip aid shipment that left nine dead was “hypocrisy,” as international calls for a probe into the incident mounted.


• Nike Mocks Butt-Toning Shoes That Drive Market-Share Loss Nike Inc.’s Eric Sprunk, vice president of global product and merchandising, ended a speech to investors on innovation with a jab at the “toning shoes” driving sales increases for competitors.


• Newsweek Gets Formal Bids From OpenGate, Ritchie, Newsmax Media Newsweek, the weekly magazine being shopped by Washington Post Co., drew formal interest yesterday from OpenGate Capital LLC, Ritchie Capital Management LLC Chief Executive Officer Thane Ritchie and Newsmax Media Inc.


• Exxon $600 Million Algae Investment Makes Khosla See Pipe Dream Inside an industrial warehouse in South San Francisco, California, Harrison Dillon, chief technology officer of startup Solazyme Inc., examines a beaker filled with a brown paste made of sugar cane waste. While the smell brings to mind molasses, this goo, called bagasse, won’t find its way into people-pleasing confections.


• Foxconn Workers Say `Meaningless' Life Spurs Suicides Ah Wei has an explanation for Foxconn Technology Group Chairman Terry Gou as to why some of his workers are committing suicide at the company’s factory near the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.


• British Airways Strike Arbiter Bemoans `False Dawns' British Airways Plc’s negotiations with cabin crew over pay and staffing levels have led to “so many false dawns” that one of the arbiters in the dispute will no longer speculate about the outcome.


• Swiss Cantons Ratchet Up Tax Breaks as Europe Fights Deficits Schaffhausen, the northernmost part of Switzerland, used tax breaks to lure Tyco Electronics Ltd. from Bermuda to a new base on the River Rhine as Swiss cantons offer a tonic to European austerity.


• Las Vegas Sands Says Singapore Site to Top Estimates Las Vegas Sands Corp., the casino company controlled by billionaire Sheldon Adelson, says its Singapore resort is set to exceed analysts’ cash-flow projections this year as gamblers flock to the new complex.


• Harrah's, Hard Rock Compete as East Europeans Put up $8 Billion for Casino On the verdant pastureland where razor wire used to divide Europe, local developers are placing an $8 billion bet at the roulette wheel.

Bloomberg Daily News

"Tell Me Why" is a single by singer Declan Galbraith

Declan Jonethan Galbraith born 19 December 1991, Hoo St Werburgh, Kent is an English singer of Irish and Scottish origin. He is known for the control and range of his voice, as well as his ability to interpret and adapt material of different genres.

Declan's talent was publicly acknowledged for the first time when at just 7 years old he insisted on performing spontaneously at the annual Rochester Dickens Festival, a two-day extravaganza where people were invited to dress up in Victorian costumes to celebrate the life and times of the famous author Charles Dickens and his links with their town.

Hollingsworth Daily Post

• Treasury Said to Pick Lead Bank for GM IPO as Soon as Next Week The U.S. Treasury and General Motors Co. may choose a lead underwriter for the automaker’s initial public offering as soon as next week, two people familiar with the matter said yesterday.


• Dubai Capital Returning, Standard Chartered Says Capital is gradually flowing back into Dubai after one of its main holding companies reached a debt restructuring accord with lenders, according to Standard Chartered Plc, one of Dubai World’s seven biggest creditors.


• Thai AirAsia Plans IPO as Parent Mulls Dual Listing AirAsia Bhd., Southeast Asia’s biggest budget airline, is considering an initial public offering of its unit in Thailand next year amid a surge in leisure travel in the region.


• Fujitsu Aims for $1 Billion in Supercomputer Sales Fujitsu Ltd., Japan’s biggest computer-services provider, aims to boost supercomputer sales to $1 billion in five years to challenge Hewlett-Packard Co. and International Business Machines Corp.


• Newsweek Magazine, Losing Money Since 2007, Draws Possible Bids Ritchie Capital Management LLC Chief Executive Officer Thane Ritchie and private-equity firm OpenGate Capital LLC both said yesterday they are considering offers for Newsweek magazine as the first deadline for bidders approaches.


• Amazon.com Is Said to Be Introducing Thinner Kindle in August Amazon.com Inc., the world’s largest online retailer, plans to introduce the next version of its Kindle electronic-book reader in August, according to two people familiar with its plans.


• Pequot Trading Probe Could Yield $1 Million Bounty for Ex-Wife The ex-wife of a former Microsoft Corp. employee could be eligible for a $1 million bounty for helping U.S. regulators impose one of the largest-ever insider trading fines.

Bloomberg Daily News 1st June 2010