Big Disparity Some

(Reuters) - The global economy is set to expand by a modest 3.3 percent this year as a still-smoldering euro zone debt crisis and a relatively slow U.S. recovery continue to leave Asia as the main driver of growth, Reuters polls showed on Thursday. Asian economies, as well as Latin America, are expected to pick up the pace later this year, driven by monetary stimulus after a soft patch - a boost Western policymakers are increasingly unable to provide. The U.S. economy has not taken off in the way many had hoped and the outlook there remains relatively subdued, although still much better than most of its Western peers. "We think it is increasingly clear that the U.S. is on a fairly self-sustaining recovery and is reasonably - but not completely immune - from what is happening in the euro ...

(Reuters) - The U.S. services sector expanded at its fastest pace in a year in February, helped by a gain in new orders and as the housing market shows signs of stabilizing. The Institute for Supply Management said its services index rose to 57.3 in February last month from 56.8 in January, in sharp contrast to economists' expectations for a drop to 56.1. It was the index's highest level since February 2011. The services sector accounts for about two-thirds of U.S. economic activity. A reading above 50 indicates expansion. Tom Porcelli, chief U.S. economist at RBC Capital Markets in New York, highlighted the gain in the forward-looking new orders component. "At this level of ISM, this is not really changing our view that you're still looking at around a 2.0 percent year in terms of GDP ...

(Reuters) - Gold steadied on Wednesday after rising to its strongest in more than two weeks as concerns about Greece's ability to implement an unpopular bailout deal balanced gains triggered by the actual agreement. Spot gold rose to $1,759.84 an ounce in early trade, its highest since February 3, before steadying at $1,757.80 by 0716 GMT. Slower factory activity in China also helped erase some of the early gains. U.S. gold bounced from lows and added $1.20 to $1,759.70 an ounce. Cash gold staged its biggest one-day rise in two weeks on Tuesday, climbing 1.5 percent along with riskier assets after euro zone finance ministers gave the greenlight to a 130-billion-euro bailout for Greece. The euphoria faded quickly, however, as worries about implementation resurfaced, and data pointing to ...

(Reuters) - U.S. farmers this spring will seed the largest area with corn since World War Two as a mild and dry winter has raised expectations for a quick planting this spring , a Reuters poll of 24 analysts showed, signaling a boost to razor-thin stocks and lower prices in 2012. The survey showed that farmers were gearing up to plant 94.2 million acres, which could produce a record crop of 13.8 billion bushels based on a trendline yield of 161.4 bushels per acre. It would surpass the previous record of 13.1 billion in 2009. Farmers were expected to plant 75.3 million acres with soybeans, up slightly from last year's 75 million. Seeding of corn, used primary as livestock feed and to produce the gasoline additive ethanol, kicks off in the southern states in March and winds its way up to ...

Weekly Economic and Financial Commentary : 02/12/2011 U.S. Review Moderate Improvement in Economic Data The November employment report showed a big drop in the unemployment rate. However, the overall pace of job growth remains constrained. Housing market data this week indicated that new home sales rose modestly in October, while home prices continued their downward trajectory. The latest read on manufacturing sentiment from the ISM-manufacturing survey indicated that output continued to expand at a moderate pace despite the ongoing European debt crisis. Data Supports Stronger Growth in Q4 This week's data continued to reinforce our view for stronger fourth-quarter economic growth. The housing market data showed sales and new home construction have bottomed, while the ISM- ...

Nothing much from the markets yesterday. The Dow fell 72 points. Gold went down $5. Meanwhile, the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement goes on in America. And 70,000 Greeks “clash with police,” say the news headlines. People are upset. They know something is wrong. But they don’t know what. The real explanation is too complicated. They won’t sit still for it. So, they look for scapegoats — the rich…the banks…the Chinese. There’s a joke making its way around the Internet. Goldman Sachs has decided to try to profit from the OWS protests. They’ve set up a “Rage Fund” that will invest in companies that make police batons, pepper spray, bandages, and glass windows. It’s a joke. But it may turn out to be a good investment strategy. We’ve made a number of big predictions here in The Daily ...

(Reuters) - The U.S. services sector grew last month at its quickest pace since mid-2006 and private-sector hiring was triple economists' forecasts, though recovery across Europe remained mixed. Chinese service sector firms also continued to grow in December even as the government announced a series of measures to tamp down rising inflation. But the most promising signs came from the United States, adding to a string of recent economic data suggesting the world's biggest economy is finally starting to pick up steam. The Institute for Supply Management said Wednesday its non-manufacturing sector index for December rose to 57.1, the highest since May 2006 and its 12th straight month of expansion. The report comprises mainly service sector firms. A separate report showing a surprise surge ...

If you’re interested in making money in energy commodities over the coming decade, I have two important numbers for you… The first is the price of natural gas in the US – which is less than $4.50 per million British thermal units (mBtu). The second is the price of natural gas in Asia, where people will pay $10 per mBtu for natural gas they import from overseas. This is a disparity someone can make a lot of money on. The only reason it exists at all is that the natural gas market is mainly a local market. It is not as easy to ship natural gas across the seas as it is to ship oil. You have to supercool it so it liquefies. Then you can put it on a tanker and ship it to a terminal where your buyer can re-gasify it. This is the liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade. There are problems. US energy ...

The Dollar experienced mix trading yesterday, climbing against the Yen but falling against the EUR with traders anticipating both Japanese and U.S. interest rate decisions and a bloc of economic data. The economic releases to come may be a positive for the USD. Economic News USD - Existing Home Sales Fall Sharply Yesterday's release of U.S. existing home sales showed a sharp drop during the month of December. Traders reacted by selling the Dollar and buying the EUR instead. However, by the end of the day, the EUR/USD was relatively unchanged from its opening price as traders are tentative to place large bets on the direction of currencies before the release of both Japanese and American interest rate decisions. Near the end of the day, the EUR/USD was trading at 1.4155 from an opening ...