Archive for July 2nd, 2009

Johannesburg, July 2 (I-Net Bridge) - A disappointing jobs report out of the US set the stage for a poor Dow opening and a languid finish in the red for local equities. The rand also gave way as the firmer dollar took the edge off commodities, while bonds continued their downward spiral on supply… »

Jeremy, back from collecting his latest bucket of air miles, reflects on the first half of 2009 and looks forward to the next 6… »

A leading economist describes the numbers from NAAMSA, yesterday’s manufacturing data, and the horrible jobs figures from the United… »

July 2 (Bloomberg) — Employers in the U.S. cut 467,000 jobs in June, the unemployment rate rose and hourly earnings stagnated, offering little evidence the Obama administration’s stimulus package is shoring up the labor market.

The payroll decline was more than forecast and followed a 322,000 drop in May, according to Labor Department figures released… »

Notwithstanding the turmoil experienced in international financial markets and the domestic cyclical economic developments during 2008, the South African banking system again remained stable, said the central bank in a report on Thursday.
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said in Supervision Department’s Annual Report that local banks were adequately capitalised and… »

Johannesburg, Jul 2 (I-Net Bridge) – South African new vehicle sales in June were down 23.7% year-on-year compared with a fall of 34.7% y/y in May, figures from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA) on Thursday… »

Johannesburg, Jul 2 (I-Net Bridge) – The FNB House Price Index declined by 10.2% year-on-year in June compared with a revised -8.5% rate for May, according to the latest FNB house price index released on Thursday.

The bank said the June FNB House Price Series reflected some backward data revisions, with a… »

Johannesburg, July 2 (I-Net Bridge) - The 2nd quarter Ernst & Young Bank confidence index results released on Thursday indicate a slight improvement in sector confidence. However, a breakdown by category illustrates that retail bank’ prospects remain weak, while investment banks have seen an upsurge in sentiment, largely driven by business… »

There has been strong take-up from existing share holders for Rio Tinto’s cash-raising exercise.

The mining giant was trying to raise $15.2bn (£9.3bn) from shareholders in its UK and Australian listings…. »

A senior Bank of England official today compared the banking system over the last 20 years to the South Sea bubble of the early 18th century and said bankers had merely “resorted to the roulette wheel” to keep up with each other.

The Bank’s executive director for financial stability, Andy Haldane, said in a speech in… »