Archives of Australia

1. Euro tripped by ECB, Aussie eyes rate decision

   2013-05-06 23:19:20 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   SYDNEY: The euro struggled to gain any momentum in early Asian trade on Tuesday, while the Australian dollar nursed losses as bears bet on the prospect of a cut in interest rates later in the session.The common currency was at $1.3073, having pulled back from Monday's high of $1.3141. It fell as far as $1.3053 after the head of the European Central Bank (ECB) reiterated the central bank's ...

2. Australian shares rise on Wall St records, financials lead

   2013-04-11 05:11:36 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   SYDNEY: Australian shares rose 0.7 percent on Thursday, underpinned by the financial sector as record overnight highs for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 boosted risk appetites.Among banks, Westpac Banking Corp rallied 1.7 percent while biggest lender the Commonwealth Bank of Australia climbed 1.1 percent.The S&P/ASX 200 index added 31.4 points to 4,999.4 by 0201 GMT, afte...

3. Yen holds gains as euro suffers on Italy uncertainty

   2013-02-26 23:05:15 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   SYDNEY: The yen held near one-month highs on Wednesday, remaining susceptible to bursts of short-covering as political uncertainty in Italy kept the euro under the gun.   Comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that eased market concerns of an early end to the Fed's bond buying programme, also somewhat cooled demand for the greenback.   The dollar was at 91.99 yen, up from...

4. NZ's Auckland Council puts off bond issue

   2012-10-11 05:30:23 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   WELLINGTON: The local government authority for New Zealand city's biggest city Auckland said on Thursday it was putting a planned issue on hold as it looked at the implications of a court case.   Earlier this week, the Auckland Council had announced plans for the issue of up to NZ$175 million of six year, fixed rate secured bonds for infrastructure and other spending.   However, it ...

5. NZ's Auckland Council opens bond issue

   2012-10-08 04:18:10 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   WELLINGTON: New Zealand's Auckland Council said on Monday it would look to raise up to NZ$175 million ($143 million) through a bond issue to fund infrastructure.   It said it would offer six year, fixed rate secured bond, with the offer closing on Oct 12, when the interest rate would be finalised.   The rate would be the aggregate of the applicable 6-year swap rate at that time plus...

6. Soybeans firm as investors look for bargains, hover below $16 a bushel

   2012-09-27 04:35:27 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   SYDNEY: US soybeans rose on Thursday to hover below $16 a bushel, as investors looked for bargains following declines in the previous session when renewed concerns over the euro zone debt crisis and the record pace of the US harvest dragged on prices.   Corn, which hit a near three-month low on Wednesday, and wheat both climbed as well.   FUNDAMENTALS   Chicago Board Of Trade...

7. Aussie & kiwi dollars hold ground on USD, nurse losses vs yen

   2012-09-25 04:07:35 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   WELLINGTON/SYDNEY: The Australian and New Zealand dollars were holding ground on the US dollar on Tuesday, but nursed losses against the yen due to Japanese fund repatriation ahead of their half-year book-closing.   The Aussie edges up to $1.0438, from $1.0412 in early trade, having bounced from $1.0387 offshore. Key support at $1.0340, the 200-day MA and 61.8 pct of the $1.0165/$1.0625 mo...

8. South Korea's MFG buys 55,000 T soybean meal for Jan

   2012-09-20 04:22:45 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   SEOUL: South Korea's Major Feedmill Group (MFG) has purchased 55,000 tonnes of soybean meal via a tender closed late on Wednesday, traders said on Thursday.   The group bought US origin soybean meal from Archer Daniels Midland for arrival by Jan. 5, 2013, at the ports of Kunsan and Pyongtaek, they said, while declining to give price information.   Copyright Reuters, 2012 ...

9. Bonds extend losses after ADP July job growth

   2012-08-01 15:20:35 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

   NEW YORK: US Treasuries extended early losses on Wednesday after the ADP National Employment Report showed higher-than-forecast private sector job growth in July. The benchmark 10-year Treasury note, down 5/32 before the report, was down 7/32 afterwards, its yield rising to 1.49 percent from 1.47 percent late on Tuesday. The 30-year Treasury bond, down 13/32 in early dealings, was down 20/3...

10. Australia govt debt agency sees global uncertainty underpinning bonds

    2011-09-12 07:58:35 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

    CANBERRA: Foreign ownership in Australian government debt is at record levels with sovereign wealth funds among keen buyers, the head of the government debt agency told Reuters, while global market conditions should add to investor interest in local debt. Australia is one of only 18 nations with a top-rated AAA credit rating from Standard & Poor's, which on August 5 downgraded the US AAA credi...

11. Euro bond would get weakest member's rating

    2011-09-03 11:37:02 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

    ALPBACH: A joint bond issued by euro zone countries would get the weakest member's rating if the issue was jointly guaranteed, the head of Standard & Poor's European sovereign ratings said on Saturday. S&P was not in talks with the European Union about the idea because that would present a potential conflict of interest, Moritz Kraemer, managing director, EMEA sovereign ratings, told a panel disc...

12. Fitch Affirms Bank of New Zealand Covered Bonds at 'AAA'

    2011-08-15 04:49:14 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

    SYDNEY: Fitch Ratings has affirmed Bank of New Zealand's (BNZ; Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (LT IDR): 'AA'/Outlook Stable, Short-Term IDR: 'F1+') outstanding NZD3.4bn residential mortgage covered bonds at 'AAA'. The rating is based on BNZ's 'AA' LTIDR and a Discontinuity Factor (D-Factor) of 26.4pc, the combination of which enables the covered bonds to reach a 'AAA' rating for the programme on...

13. Australia bond risk index jumps on credit volatility

    2011-08-09 06:25:39 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

    SYDNEY: Australia's bond risk index iTraxx opened 27 points higher at 157/158 points, according to data provider Markit, on fresh volatility in global credit markets. A rise in iTraxx, a credit default swaps index of Australia's top 25 debt issuers, means that cost of protecting against companies defaulting on their debt is more expensive. The biggest single movers were insurance company QBE I...

14. Australian bond futures rally to two-year high

    2011-08-02 07:11:09 GMT : (Markets - Fixed Income/Australia)

    SYDNEY: Australian debt futures rallied on Tuesday after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) kept interest rates unchanged and sounded less certain about the global economic outlook. The three-year bond futures rose as high as 95.750, up 0.25 points on the day, reaching highs not seen since July 2009. Interbank futures also rose strongly as some in the market again priced in the chance of an inte...