Here's my summary of the key news today in 90 seconds at 9 am, including news that markets are agog at the spectacular Twitter float this morning.
After the experts priced it at US$26/share, it has burst higher and is now at US$45/share. Xero-like!
However, the overall markets are lower in mid afternoon trade after big economy news out of both Europe and the US.
Euro-area government bonds surged, led by Italian and Spanish securities, after the European Central Bank unexpectedly cut its benchmark interest rate to a record low 0.25%, boosting demand for fixed-income assets. The British left theirs unchanged at 0.5%.
In the US, the first reading of their September GDP shows it significantly higher - at an annual rate of 2.8% and up from 2.5% growth in the June quarter - this is more than the 2.0% everyone was expecting.
But a closer reading shows that it was pumped up by restocking rather than consumer demand, and that slowing consumer demand indicates a loss of momentum in the American economy. And based on that, the US Fed is unlikely to taper its bond purchases any earlier.
In Australia, employers there cut full-time workers in October by the most in more than a year, sending the Aussie currency lower. Still, their unemployment rate at 5.7% is lower than ours at 6.2%.
Staying in Australia, their federal government is now expected to bring in a budget deficit for this financial year of around AU$45 billion, 50% higher that what was indicated during their election campaign, and about 2.9% of GDP.
The NZ dollar starts today at 83.5 USc, 88.2 AUc, and the TWI was at 77.7.
The easiest place to stay up with today's event risk is by following our Economic Calendar here »
12 Comments
Twitter has launched onto the NASDAQ ( ticker TWTR ) with a hugely successful IPO , up $US 20 per share ( 77 % ) , to $US 46 , in it's first half day of trading ....
.. this values the company at $US 25 billion .... although it still hasn't made a profit , yet .... Now where have we heard that before !
CEO David Costolo says that the firm will be able to ratchet up revenues , when the directors deem the time is right to keep the shareholders happy ... and when they figure out a way to monetize their business model without doing a FaceBook , and pissing everyone off ....
.. butcha gotta say , them shareholders would be fairly happy little campers today , just as things are ...
Methinks Gummy that if there was a way for Twitter to 'rachet up revenues' - they would have done it by now. Can't see they they have been holding back for the right time.
GBH.... The listing of twitter could mark the top in the mkt.
I think this is the last big IPO this yr...?? so if the mkt wants to go down... it can do it now.
This might be a nervous november..
This is not a prediction ....just an observation.... just like being on the cover of Time magazine can mark a turn in a mkt....
Ahhh... what the hell... This is a prediction... :)
BioTechs are having a cracker 2013 in the US , with 39 IPO lisitngs to date , raising $US 3 billion in capital for those companies ...
... an additional 15 biotech stocks are due to list on the Nasdaq before year's end ...
There's alot more to the US market than those few giant techies which get all the headlines ..
Twitter has been mentioned in every news broadcast for the last several years. IMHO thats what has driven the shareprice. Nothing to do with $, numbers, or prospects.
Here at home there will be shareholders amazed at how much dough they have made recently in Xero. Happiness. At the same time they will be in a sweat of anxiety about the potential for collapse. Both at the same time.
Cuts, cuts, cuts The global trend is still on cutting rates, lower for longer, QE for longer.
NZ will also be influenced by this despite foreign buyers pushing up Auckland house prices.
Funniest video seen this morning , Jimmy Kimmel's " How to tell if your mayor is smoking crack " .... in honour of the Toronto City mayor ....
... we could do one of our own , " How to tell if your mayor is eating Chinese " ...
Bevan's smiling !
Mayors and smokin' crack.
So many jokes............ so little time.
In fact did you know that half the jokes that have ever been told have been told in the last 20 years. We have now reached peak joke....... and that's just not funny. Our children and grandchildren will curse us from their mirthless world.
Are you saying we 'just don't get it' But wait.... it's been said before !
In regards to ECB rate cut and USA GDP figures :
Reposting a link from y/day that Colin posted... ( Very good article which I think is .."on to it ")
http://english.caixin.com/2013-11-05/100599385.html
Maybe it is because my "world view" is similar to Andy Xies', especially in regards to the FED.... but even so... this is worth printing out and studying... ( in my view).
Market ticker showing how GDP growth with money printing...is not really "growth "
The continuing consumer spending weakness in the US numbers is the big red flag. I think it's going to take more than a one time inventory spend to make the Fed consider any tapering.
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