| Stocks Power Up After Early Losses; Nasdaq Rides Steamroller Volume
Indexes rebounded from an early slump despite or because of weak retail sales and home sales data. The NYSE, which had sunk as much as 1%, had recovered to a 0.2% loss as of 10:54 a.m. EST. The Nasdaq came back to near break-even after a 1.2% tumble. Transportation issues played a strong role in the recovery, with Nasdaq's (NASDAQ:NDAQ) transports index up 1.6%. Small caps bucked up, with the S&P 600 adding 0.7%. The S&P 500 added 0.2% while the Dow hovered at a fractional loss. Trading volume was 15% higher on the NYSE, more than 50% higher on the NYSE, versus Wednesday's soft trading. Pending home sales fell 1.5% in December, less than in prior months but still worse than expected. In a case of bad news is good news, the market may be reading these data as yet another excuse for the fed to cut rates further.
10-month Suspension for Luk Kam Kwong Kenneth
The SFC has suspended Mr Luk Kam Kwong Kenneth for 10 months from 8 January to 7 November 2008 for his failure to act candidly during an insider dealing inquiry and for favouring his own interests ahead of his client's (Note 1).
The action follows an inquiry conducted by the Insider Dealing Tribunal in 2006, concerning trading in the then Cheong Ming Holdings Limited (Note 2) in which Luk failed to respond to the IDT and the SFC with the candour expected of a licensed person (Note 3).
His evidence before the IDT in 2006 also led to the discovery that, in January 2000, Luk executed a client's order to purchase 400,000 shares in Cheong Ming but allocated 170,000 shares to the sister of his then girlfriend rather than allocating all of the shares to his client (Note 4).
Overcrowding plagues NFL pregame shows
When the Giants-Bucs game finished Sunday afternoon, I flipped over to CBS and inadvertently stumbled into a historic six-guys-at-the-same-table pregame show: The usual suspects (James Brown, Boomer Esiason, Dan Marino, Shannon Sharpe and Coach Cowher) were crowded behind their desk with Charley Casserly, who should be dressed in a Mario Williams jersey that has two middle fingers sewn on the back at all times. And for the next few minutes, those six guys attempted to have a round-table "conversation." Now ... .
Le rogue trader
TROUBLE had been expected but nothing like this. Widespread concerns that Société Générale, France’s second-largest bank by market capitalisation, had more subprime-related woes to reveal were proved right on Thursday January 24th, with the announcement of a €2.05 billion ($3 billion) write-down on its exposure to mortgage-related investments and to creaking bond insurers. But those numbers were a sideshow to something far more shocking. The bank also revealed that a single trader had racked up a further €4.9 billion loss by taking unauthorised bets on futures linked to European stockmarkets. Trading in SocGen’s shares were suspended on Thursday morning but it will not escape punishment. .
Recession fears drive FTSE 100's biggest-ever points fall
The benchmark FTSE 100 index suffered the biggest points fall in its history as a number of factors heightened fears of a US recession and sent doom and gloom reverberating through the City.
For breaking news, changing views and trading-floor, Ben Bland's Market ForcesFurther data on shares .
Commentary: Other agencies use DoT accounting services
The Transportation Department four years ago completed the conversion of all of its component agencies to a single state-of-the-art financial system using commercial off-the-shelf software. We now provide proven financial system and expert accounting services to other agencies as a federal shared service provider, as designated by the Office of Management and Budget. .
PGI, GMCH docs to go on strike today
The idea behind installation of solar red lights is wonderful at the roundabouts of Sector 21-22, Sector 34-35 and other places. This has given some kind of relief to the commuters from the frequent traffic snarls. The network of slip roads too is a welcome step to streamline the flow of traffic. A lot more needs to be done to end traffic chaos on the City Beautiful roads. Beast of burden The other day, a horse buckled down under the weight of its cart overloaded with goods at the Modella intersection. Before passersby could rush to the animals help, the cart overturned, scattering the goods in the middle of the road. Thankfully, both horse and horsewala escaped unhurt. But horsewala went away scot-free as the cops chose not to take any action. Nothing serves to spur the police to take action against such beastly men.
A progress report card on the ten World Cup stadiums
Progress on the R8,4-billion construction and upgrade of the ten stadiums selected to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup has emerged, rightly or wrongly, as the touchstone for South Africa's readiness to host a world-class event. The developments are also proving to be catalyst for a host of other infrastructure investments, such as the R19-billion for the expansion of airports, as well as the R5,5-billion investment for rail and road network improvements, directly associated with an event that is expected to attract a cumulative television viewership of over 40-billion in more than 200 countries. There is no question that the South African government is alive to the threats and oppor- tunities associated with the spectacle, which will kick off on June 11, 2010, not only for this country, but for the entire continent.
McCain, Clinton win state battles
For the victors on Saturday, the prize is a jolt of energy in a race where momentum has been short-lived. Republican contenders head to Florida for a January 29 primary, while Democrats focus on next Saturday's primary in South Carolina. Both parties then turn their attention to the critical February 5 "Super Tuesday" round of 22 state contests. Clinton won the Nevada Democratic race, 51% to 45%, with turnout reported to surpass 115,000 voters. "We ran an honest, uplifting campaign in Nevada that focused on the real problems Americans are facing, a campaign that appealed to people's hopes instead of their fears," Obama said in a statement. "That's the campaign we'll take to South Carolina and across America in the weeks to come." South Carolina conservatives McCain's win in South Carolina comes after a win in New Hampshire and was fuelled by support from conservatives, with seven in 10 voters in the state primary describing themselves that way, according to exit polls.
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