The European Central Bank is considering using its bond holdings to bolster Greece
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World stock markets were mostly higher Friday following signs of progress in debt-plagued Europe _ a successful bond sale in Italy and the naming of a new leader in Greece.
Benchmark oil rose to $98 per barrel while the dollar slipped against the euro and the yen.
European shares posted gains in early trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.6 percent at 5,472.80. Germany’s DAX rose 0.9 percent at 5,919.99 while France’s CAC-40 added 0.8 percent to 3,087.77.
Wall Street was also poised for gains, with Dow Jones industrial futures 0.1 percent higher at 11,869 and S&P 500 futures rising 0.2 percent to 1,239.30.
The gains in Europe were in line with trading earlier in the day in Asia.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index closed up 0.2 percent to 8,514.47, a day after the index fell to a five-week closing low of 8,500.80.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.9 percent to 19,137.17 and South Korea’s Kospi added 2.8 percent to 1,863.45. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.2 percent to 4,296.50. Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose marginally to 2,481.08.
Investors were calmed by news that Greece _ which is struggling to pull back from the brink of bankruptcy _ had named Lucas Papademos, a respected economist, as its new prime minister on Thursday.
Another sign of stability came after Italy was able to borrow $6.8 billion at lower interest rates than analysts expected. On Wednesday, Italy’s 10-year bond yields shot up alarmingly, stoking panic in financial markets that the country was heading toward a Greece-style debt crisis.
Confidence was also boosted by the prospect of economist Mario Monti replacing Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who has been viewed as an obstacle to meaningful economic reform.
“Europe still dominates and there are still huge concerns, but Greece has a new prime minister and Italy has a new prime minister in the wings, and everyone is much more aware of the seriousness of the nature of what is confronting Europe,” said Andrew Sullivan, principal sales trader at Piper Jaffray in Hong Kong.
Traders have fretted that debt troubles in Italy and Greece could blow up into a massive liquidity crisis and lead to a global financial meltdown.
The European Union warned Thursday that the grouping of 17 nations that use the euro common currency could slip back into recession next year. The European Commission predicted the euro countries will grow a barely perceptible 0.5 percent in 2012 _ much less than its earlier forecast of 1.8 percent.
Europe has already bailed out Greece, Portugal and Ireland _ but Italy is a much larger economy and its mountain of debt _ $2 faxless cash advance.6 trillion (euro1.9 trillion) _ is far too massive for the continent to cover.
Sullivan said economic data next week on the world’s No. 1 economy will be closely watched.
“If any of that data comes out bad, it’s probably going to put Asia into more of a downturn. If there’s bad data out of the U.S. and more out of Europe, we can see Asia taking another step down,” Sullivan said.
Hong Kong-based ERA Mining Machinery Ltd. shot up 19.7 percent after U.S.-based Caterpillar Inc. said it was seeking to buy the Chinese maker of mining machinery for as much as $886 million. ERA designs, builds, sells and supports equipment for underground coal mining in China.
In Seoul, technology shares jumped. LG Electronics gained 6.4 percent and Samsung Electronics was up 5.1 percent. Shares of SK Telecom Co., South Korea’s top mobile carrier, rose 3.1 percent after the company offered to buy a controlling stake in Hynix Semiconductor, Yonhap News Agency reported.
India’s privately owned Kingfisher Airlines dropped 12.7 percent after the carrier was forced to cancel dozens of flights as pilots and crew called in sick after their October salaries were delayed.
In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 1 percent to close at 11,893.86. It plunged 389 points Wednesday after Italy’s borrowing rates soared and talks in Greece to name a new prime minister broke down.
Positive economic data from the U.S. also boosted hopes that the world’s No. 1 economy would avoid a new recession.
The Labor Department reported that the number of people applying for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell to 390,000 last week _ the fewest since April. The data suggested layoffs are easing and that the economy grew slightly better over the summer than estimated.
The S&P 500 index gained 0.9 percent to 1,239.70. The Nasdaq rose 0.1 percent to 2,625.15.
In currency trading, the euro rose to $1.3653 from $1.3581 late Thursday in New York. The dollar fell to 77.34 yen from 77.66 yen.
Benchmark oil was up 30 cents at $98.08 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $2.04, or 2.1 percent, to finish at $97.78 on Thursday.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez tossed a softball overhand with gusto Thursday, said his latest medical checks have been stellar and ridiculed rumors that his health might have taken a turn for the worse.
Chavez said he is bouncing back vigorously from chemotherapy and gaining weight more than three months after he had surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his pelvic region. He declined to say what type of cancer he was diagnosed with.
“You want me to tell you more? What for?” Chavez said when asked about the cancer at a news conference. “Go to the hospital and ask any person who has cancer: … ‘What is it that you have? And what type is it?’ Isn’t there something morbid in that?”
“I had a tumor. Now, what do you want me to tell you? That I take the tumor and explain to you here what type of tumor it was and the causes?” Chavez said. “I’m not going to gratify you. A malignant tumor. What more do you all want? … I had it here, they extracted it.”
Chavez motioned to the area where he said the tumor was removed, indicating a vertical incision on his abdomen crossing his waist line. The president said he saw images of the tumor, which was about the size of a baseball, and he held up a baseball as he described the operation.
He reiterated that all of his medical checks have shown no sign of any resurgence of the cancer.
“My latest tests, all of them, have shown very positive results,” he said.
“Here I am. I’m not in my best shape,” Chavez acknowledged, saying that is to be expected after chemotherapy. But he also said he has been lifting weights and is recovering smoothly.
“I’m my own response. And the life I lead from now on, with the grace of God, will be the response, the new Chavez,” said the president, who is running for re-election in 2012.
Chavez dismissed a report in a U.S. newspaper, El Nuevo Herald of Miami, that cited anonymous sources saying he had been hospitalized and that his condition might be deteriorating. He read aloud portions of the report to journalists outside the doors of the presidential palace.
“They’ve got me on dialysis,” Chavez said with a laugh, denying it.
Chavez had been largely out of sight since returning from Cuba last week after a fourth round of chemotherapy that he has said would be his last.
He said in a telephone call broadcast on television earlier Thursday that he is taking steroids and other medicines as he recovers from the chemotherapy.
He said he is working at “half throttle” while the effects of the treatment pass.
“I’m going to completely get out of this soon,” Chavez said.
The 57-year-old leader said his body has coped well with chemotherapy and assured Venezuelans he will keep them informed.
“I would be the first … to communicate any difficulty in the process. None beyond the normal has come up,” Chavez said.
Chavez has provided regular updates on his condition since he announced in a prerecorded video aired June 30 that he had undergone surgery for cancer. He said later that the surgery to remove the tumor was performed June 20.
The president’s critics have complained that he has kept secret some key details about his illness.
Chavez said he has provided ample information. He reiterated that his tumor had been “encapsulated” when it was removed and it hadn’t affected his colon or organs.
“I had cancer, in a ball that was removed,” Chavez said, holding up the baseball.
Later, he pitched a softball to his foreign minister outside the palace, smiling and throwing his weight behind each toss.
Asian stocks were mixed Wednesday as investors fearful of a debt implosion in Europe held onto hopes that the Federal Reserve will announce measures to jolt the U.S. economy.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was marginally higher at 8,721.98 after the Finance Ministry released trade data showing the country’s exports rose for the first time in six months. South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.4 percent to 1,845.09.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.8 percent to 18,866.30. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200, swinging between gains and losses, was less than 0.1 percent up at 4,041.30. Benchmarks in New Zealand and Taiwan were higher. Those in Singapore and Malaysia fell.
On Wall Street, stocks rose on hopes the U.S. central bank would announce steps to boost the flagging economy. Many analysts believe the Fed will announce a new stimulus plan at the end of a two-day policy meeting Wednesday.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 0.1 percent at 11,408.66. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell 0.2 percent to 1,202.09. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.9 percent to 2,590.24.
Meanwhile, debt-saddled Greece moved closer Tuesday to getting the vital bailout funds it needs to avoid a disastrous default on its debts after persuading international debt inspectors to return to Athens and resume reviewing its austerity program. Without the money, the country would default within weeks.
Greece has been depending on rescue loans from other eurozone countries and the IMF since May 2010, when its borrowing costs went through the roof following revelations Athens had been underreporting an alarmingly bloated budget deficit and public debt.
Greece is only one of several European countries that investors fear may be at risk of failing to pay their debts. On Monday night, the ratings agency Standard & Poor’s cut Italy’s credit rating by one notch. Italy has the second-biggest debt burden among countries that use the euro, after Greece.
If Greece or Italy were to default, European banks that have lent money to the countries could lose billions of dollars. That could hurt the European banking system and have repercussions for U.S. banks. Investors are concerned that a default in Europe could cause a lending crisis similar to what happened after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008.
In energy trading, benchmark oil for October delivery was down 35 cents at $86.57 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude rose $1.11 to settle at $86.92 on Tuesday.
In London, Brent crude for November delivery was up 9 cents at $110.63 on the ICE Futures exchange.
Six years ago Gail Vaz-Oxlade was burnt out and not keen on returning to work. But she couldn
A proposed combination of two Canadian patent licensing companies will make it easier to extract lucrative licensing deals from technology giants, would-be buyer WiLan said on Thursday.
WiLan, which makes money by developing and licensing intellectual property for the communications and consumer electronics markets, has offered $38 a share for smaller rival Mosaid just as tech majors pay heavily for patents to use as weapons in litigation and cross-licensing.
The Toronto stock market tumbled almost 500 points Monday after an unprecedented credit rating downgrade of U.S. government debt by Standard and Poor’s helped give added momentum to a four-week-old selloff.
Some airline customers won’t see savings this weekend even though several federal taxes on tickets have expired. US Airways and American Airlines say they’ve raised fares to offset any tax savings.
That means instead of passing along the savings from expired taxes, the airlines are pocketing the money while customers pay the same amount as before.
The expired taxes can total $25 to $30 on a typical $300 round-trip ticket faxless cash advance.
The taxes expired after midnight Friday night when Congress failed to pass legislation to keep the Federal Aviation Administration running.
President Barack Obama is taking his case to the public as the clock ticks down to an Aug. 2 deadline to raise the government’s borrowing limit or default on U.S. obligations.
The president holds a town hall meeting Friday morning at the University of Maryland, College Park campus. It’s a quick trip from the Beltway but will be Obama’s first public appearance this month outside what he calls the White House “bubble.” The president has been occupied with near-daily negotiations with congressional leaders on a deal to raise the debt limit freecreditscore.
The town hall session comes amid some signs of progress. But Obama still faces a big selling job, given Democratic unease with cuts to Medicare and other entitlement programs and Republican opposition to tax increases.