Offers for readers

The comment stream

Recent comments

Join the Interest community to be a registered commenter so you can:
- Edit your comments
- Avoid the CAPTCHA
- Vote on comments
Register Here

Already registered? log back in here ..

Forgotten your password? No problem! Click here

Finance sector jobs

Senior Legal Counsel
At NAB, it's all about our people reaching their full potential. And that means we drive t...more
Australia
Senior Financial Planner (Business) - Bondi - NSW - NAB
Senior Financial Planning professional to join our Business Banking team in Bondi....more
Australia
Senior Manager, Operational Risk & Monitoring
At NAB, it's all about our people reaching their full potential. And in MLC and NAB Wealth...more
Australia
Corporate Recovery Senior – Australia, Audit experience welcomed
Successful applicants will have the opportunity to work with this leading Australian Advis...more
Australia
efinancialcareers.com

Reader poll

Who do you think should be appointed Reserve Bank Governor to replace Alan Bollard when he retires in September?

Choices

90 seconds at 9am: Housing activity to pick-up; China trade surge; South American troubles

Posted in News

Watch video on our video page here.

Watch video on YouTube here.

Alex Tarrant presents the key news from this morning and the weekend in 90 seconds at 9am in association with BNZ.

QV have released their final report on 2009 showing that house values rose 2.8% over the year. Values finished 2009 4.9% below their late 2007 peak, from 5.9% below the peak in November. For more on the QV figures see here.

Chinese trade surged by more than expected in December, reducing the case for governments to sustain stimulus programs in 2010, Blomberg reports. Exports rose 17.7% in December from a year ago, their first rise in 14 months. Imports rose 55.9%.

Moving to South America, firstly, in Venezuela, the government devalued the currency (announced during a major baseball game), meaning imports there will become more expensive, Reuters reported.

Secondly, a row has erupted in Argentina over central bank independence after the president of the central bank, Martín Redrado, refused to transfer around US$6.6 billion of foreign reserves to Argentina's Bicentennial fund, set up to guarantee debt repayments. Argentinian President Cristina Kirchner called for Redrado's resignation, prompting opposition parties to slam the call as a move threatening the inderpendence of the central bank, IHS Global Insight reports.

We welcome your help to improve our coverage of this issue. Any examples or experiences to relate? Any links to other news, data or research to shed more light on this? Any insight or views on what might happen next or what should happen next? Any errors to correct?

We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment in the box on the right or click on the "'Register" link at the bottom of the comments. Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making these comments.