Hong Kong stocks rebound with broad gains

Tue, 22 May 2012 02:00:43 GMT

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Hong Kong stocks rose with other Asian markets Tuesday, as the Hang Seng Index gained 0.8% to 19,073.31, and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index surged 1.3%. Resource shares were among the big winners after an overnight recovery in many commodity prices, as Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. leaped 4.6%, Jiangxi Copper Co. traded 3.1% higher, and Cnooc Ltd. rose 2.2%. Some plays on domestic Chinese demand also outperformed, with Want Want China Holdings Ltd. ahead by 6.6%, and casino operator Melco International Development Ltd. climbing 3.1%. Gains for exporters included a 4.4% rise for Prada SpA and a 2.8% gain for Lenovo Group Ltd. . Among the decliners, Tencent Holdings Ltd. fell 0.8%, tracking losses for fellow social-media firm Facebook Inc. in the U.S., while Ports Design Ltd. plunged 35% after its shares resumed trading following a scandal involving interest-free loans. Over on the Chinese mainland, the Shanghai Composite gained 0.6%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Australia stocks rise, as resources add to gains

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:34:13 GMT

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Australian stocks rose in early Tuesday action, as strength in key commodities helped miners add to strong gains in the previous session, with the S&P/ASX 200 trading 0.5% higher at 4,093.60. Among the senior miners, Rio Tinto Ltd. rose 1.4%, Alumina Ltd. added 2.2%, and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. helped lead sector gains with a 3% advance. Oil shares cheers a turnaround in New York benchmark crude after a long losing streak, with the gains helping send Oil Search Ltd. rising 2.4%, Origin Energy Ltd. higher by 1.4%, and oil-services major WorleyParsons Ltd. climbing 2.6%. Meanwhile, stock in Qantas Airways Ltd. advanced 0.7% after the carrier said it will split its international and domestic divisions into separate units and announced the resignation of the chief executive of its budget airline Jetstar.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Japan stocks rally after U.S. gains; techs, oil up

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:20:24 GMT

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japanese stocks rallied in early Tuesday trade, with exporters getting a sentiment bump after overnight gains in the U.S., and energy shares advancing after crude-oil futures snapped their losing streak in New York trade. The benchmark Nikkei Stock Average climbed 1.2% to 8,733.50, with the Topix also adding 1.2%. Technology stocks helped lead the advance following the tech-heavy Nasdaq's best day of 2012 so far, with Sony Corp. rising 1.7%, Advantest Corp. advancing 2.8%, and Komatsu Ltd. up 4.9%. Shares of Renesas Electronics Corp. popped 9.3% after a Yomiuri Shimbun report said the firm would soon raise capital and cut jobs, although Dow Jones Newswires later cited the company as denying any workforce reductions. Energy stocks on the rise included Inpex Corp. and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. , up 2.8% and 2.4%, respectively. Other strong gains included at 2.9% rise for Mazda Motor Corp. , a 4% gain for shipper Nippon Yusen K.K. , and a 4.9% surge for Tokyo Electric Power Co. .

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Japan remains world's top creditor nation in 2011

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:05:16 GMT

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japan held a net 253 trillion yen ($3.19 trillion) in foreign assets at the end of 2011, hanging on to its position as the world's top creditor nation, according to Ministry of Finance data released Tuesday. The position marked a rise from net foreign assets of ¥251 trillion at end-2010, with Dow Jones Newswires reporting that the data may dampen expectations that China -- which holds the equivalent of ¥192.5 trillion in net foreign assets -- would soon overtake the Japanese as the No. 1 creditor.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Japan utilities to hike peak rates sharply: report

Mon, 21 May 2012 23:19:40 GMT

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japanese utilities are planning to increase fees for peak-hour electricity usage in an effort to head off possible power shortages this summer following the closure of the nation's nuclear power plants, the Nikkei business daily reported Tuesday. Under plans beginning for Tokyo Electric Power Co. on June 1 and for Kansai Electric Power Co. on July 1, rates during the peak hours of 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. will be more than four to six times higher than those for nighttime hours, the report said. Other utilities are likely to follow suit, except for Hokkaido Electric Power Co. and Tohoku Electric Power Co. , which see less of a difference in power usage between peak and night hours.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

SEC charges former Yahoo exec with insider trading

Mon, 21 May 2012 23:20:23 GMT

A former Yahoo executive and a former fund manager at Ameriprise Financial Inc. have entered guilty pleas in an insider-trading case stemming from a pending deal between Yahoo and Microsoft , U.S. regulators said Monday. Robert W. Kwok, formerly Yahoo's senior director of business management, and Reema D. Shah, formerly a mutual fund manager at Ameriprise Financial Inc., agreed to settle charges with penalties to be determined at a later date, the Securities and Exchange Commission said. They also pleaded guilty to related criminal charges and will be sentenced later. The pair shared information on pending deals on several occasions in "a game of you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours," an SEC statement said. Kwok will be barred from serving as an officer of a public company, while Shah will be permanently barred from the securities industry.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Obama: Bain Capital a legitimate campaign issue

Mon, 21 May 2012 21:37:16 GMT

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Mitt Romney's work for private-equity firm Bain Capital is a legitimate campaign issue, President Barack Obama said Monday, defending his campaign's recent line of attack against the Republican presidential candidate. The ads focus on plants owned by Bain where workers lost jobs. "This issue is not a distraction" and is relevant to the campaign because Romney is touting his track record, Obama said. The campaign ads were criticized Sunday by Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, N.J., a key Obama ally, who called them "nauseating." Obama's comments came at a closing news conference at the NATO summit. In discussing this weekend's G-8 leaders' meeting, the president indicated that the leaders all want to see Greece stay in the euro-zone. He said the euro zone needed a "growth strategy" to complement existing austerity programs, and that the European Central Bank's monetary policy should be "promoting" the capacity of countries undergoing restructuring like Spain or Italy "to also offer their constituencies a prospect for the economy improving, job growth increasing, incomes expanding, even if it will take a little bit of time."

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

U.S. gives China direct bidding status: report

Mon, 21 May 2012 21:01:23 GMT

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The U.S. Treasury Department has granted China's central bank the ability to buy U.S. government debt without going through a primary dealer-so-called direct bidding status, according to a report Monday by Reuters. The People's Bank of China now has a direct computer link to Treasury's auction system, the report said. Treasury refused to confirm or deny the report. "Direct bidding is open to a wide range of investors, but as a matter of general policy we do not comment on individual bidders," said Matt Anderson, a Treasury spokesman.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Urban Outfitters Q1 profit down 13%

Mon, 21 May 2012 20:36:17 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Retailer Urban Outfitters late Monday reported a first-quarter profit of $34 million, or 23 cents a share. In the same 2011 period, the company earned $39 million, or 23 cents a share, when it had more shares outstanding. Sales rose 9% to $569 million. Gross margin slipped to 35.6% from 36.9%. Philadelphia-based Urban Outfitters also runs Anthropologie stores. Shares gained 6% to $27.64 in late trades.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

U.S. stocks surge; S&P 500 best day in two months

Mon, 21 May 2012 20:14:59 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks rebounded on Monday, culminating in the S&P 500's best day in two months and allowing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to break a six-session loss streak. Analysts chalked up the rebound to bargain-hunting after stocks sold off for three straight weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 135.10 points, or 1.1%, to 12,504.48. The S&P 500 gained 20.77 points, or 1.6%, to 1,315.99. The Nasdaq Composite added 68.42 points, or 2.5%, to 2,857.21, its best day this year. Its biggest component, Apple Inc. , added 5.8%, its best day in nearly a month.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Apple jumps nearly 6% by closing bell

Mon, 21 May 2012 20:11:08 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Apple Inc. saw its shares closed trading on Monday up 5.8% to $561.28. It was the stock's best trading session since April 25, when the shares jumped following the company's earnings report for the March quarter. A handful of brokers issued bullish notes on Monday about the company's flagship iPhone business, with Goldman Sachs stating the belief that the company's business would not be affected adversely by growing worries of lower smartphone subsidies from wireless carriers.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

Facebook closes second session down 11%

Mon, 21 May 2012 20:05:13 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Facebook Inc. closed its second session of trading on Monday with a loss of 11%, with the shares settling at $34.03. The slump came after the social network's lackluster debut on the Nasdaq on Friday following its IPO; the stock closed that first day with only a fractional gain. More than 167 million shares traded hands on Monday, according to data from FactSet.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.