Chinese rate cut boosts Asia, Europe lower... Yuan set to enter IMF currency benchmark... Meat industry reacts angrily to WHO report...
Chinese rate cut boosts Asia, Europe lower
A surprise interest rate cut by China has seen Asian markets gain Monday. The People’s Bank of China made the cut of 25 basis points late Friday and also cut the reserve requirement ratio buy half of a percentage point.
The stimulus measures come amid faltering economic conditions in the country and have been welcomed by investors; although the sentiment did not spread to Hong Kong or Sydney where indexes closed lower.
European markets are generally lower so far Monday with mixed earnings adding caution to trading. London’s FTSE was hit by a fall in the stocks of telecoms firm Talk Talk which suffered a cyber attack and data breach last week.
New York and Toronto are set to open slightly lower.
Yuan set to enter IMF currency benchmark
The International Monetary Fund is set to include China’s yuan in its benchmark currency basket CNBC reports. Unnamed sources are quoted as expecting the IMF board to receive a report recommending the yuan’s inclusion in November. The members will then vote on the move. China considers inclusion in the Special Drawing Rights basket as part of its strategy to become a global financial powerhouse with less dependence on the US dollar.
Meat industry reacts angrily to WHO report
The global meat industry has been dealt a blow by the World Health Organization which says that processed and red meat should be considered in the same category as cigarettes and asbestos. The WHO report released Monday will say that sausages, bacon and other processed meats are carcinogens, while red meat may be. CNN reports that the link to cancer has been called a “dramatic and alarmist over-reach” by the North American Meat Institute.
A surprise interest rate cut by China has seen Asian markets gain Monday. The People’s Bank of China made the cut of 25 basis points late Friday and also cut the reserve requirement ratio buy half of a percentage point.
The stimulus measures come amid faltering economic conditions in the country and have been welcomed by investors; although the sentiment did not spread to Hong Kong or Sydney where indexes closed lower.
European markets are generally lower so far Monday with mixed earnings adding caution to trading. London’s FTSE was hit by a fall in the stocks of telecoms firm Talk Talk which suffered a cyber attack and data breach last week.
New York and Toronto are set to open slightly lower.
| Latest | 1 month ago | 1 year ago | |
| North America (previous session) |
|||
| US Dow Jones | 17,646.70 (+0.90 per cent) | +8.16 per cent | +5.01 per cent |
| TSX Composite | 13,953.66 (+0.54 per cent) | +4.30 per cent | -4.06 per cent |
| Europe (at 6.10am ET) |
|||
| UK FTSE | 6,430.89 (-0.20 per cent) | +5.27 per cent | +0.66 per cent |
| German DAX | 10,822.88 (+0.26 per cent) | +11.71 per cent | +20.42 per cent |
| Asia (at close) |
|||
| China CSI 300 | 3,589.26 (+0.50 per cent) | +11.06 per cent | +50.13 per cent |
| Japan Nikkei | 18,947.12 (+0.65 per cent) | +5.97 per cent | +23.91 per cent |
| Other Data (at 6.15am ET) |
|||
| Oil (Brent) | Oil (WTI) | Gold | Can. Dollar |
| 48.24 (+0.52 per cent) |
44.89 (+0.65 per cent) |
1165.80 (+0.26 per cent) |
U$0.7609 |
| Aus. Dollar |
|||
| U$0.7255 | |||
Yuan set to enter IMF currency benchmark
The International Monetary Fund is set to include China’s yuan in its benchmark currency basket CNBC reports. Unnamed sources are quoted as expecting the IMF board to receive a report recommending the yuan’s inclusion in November. The members will then vote on the move. China considers inclusion in the Special Drawing Rights basket as part of its strategy to become a global financial powerhouse with less dependence on the US dollar.
Meat industry reacts angrily to WHO report
The global meat industry has been dealt a blow by the World Health Organization which says that processed and red meat should be considered in the same category as cigarettes and asbestos. The WHO report released Monday will say that sausages, bacon and other processed meats are carcinogens, while red meat may be. CNN reports that the link to cancer has been called a “dramatic and alarmist over-reach” by the North American Meat Institute.
