Asian markets down as US stress tests eyed ----------------------------------------------------------- The Federal Reserve is expected to explain its methodology for the tests on Friday and release results on May 4. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Asian...21063.html?sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode= Asian stocks down amid uncertainty about economy, earnings; US 'stress tests' eyed On Friday April 24, 2009, 1:21 am EDT Buzz up! Print HONG KONG (AP) -- Most Asian markets dropped Friday as investors braced for news about the "stress tests" on major U.S. banks while hopes for an economic recovery remain bogged in uncertainty. Volumes were thin, suggesting investors are hesitant to place major bets one way or the other without clearer signs about the prospects for the economy and company results. Crude oil prices and the dollar weakened. As in the U.S., earnings in Asia sent mixed signals. South Korea's Samsung Electronics reported a massive drop in profit that, while better than forecast, still underlined the toll slumping demand is having on the region's major companies. But results from other Asian firms, including insurance giant China Life, were more upbeat. Investors were also treading cautiously ahead of news about Washington's "stress tests," which will determine whether banks have enough capital to survive severe loan losses.The Federal Reserve is expected to explain its methodology for the tests on Friday and release results on May 4. "The markets don't have a clear picture right now," said Castor Pang, an analyst at Sun Hung Kai Financial in Hong Kong. "Investors are waiting on announcements and other information to give them more direction." Most markets seesawed before trading lower by the afternoon. Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average lost 113.80, or 1.3 percent, to 8,733.21, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 66.14 points, or 0.4 percent, to 15,148.3.
I was looking at that... i shorted over an hour ago as i saw ES dropping and got out with a little profit. Oil seems to move around quite a bit from about 6-9am, so i wouldn't be surprised if we tested 50.00 before the open. We've seen rb/ho and equities dropping these past 2 days, and yet oil is holding up strong.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Micro...86.html?sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode= 1) For the first time in Microsoft's 23-year history as a public company, revenue fell year-over-year as PC shipments tumbled. Earnings sank 32 percent. Microsoft did not issue earnings guidance for the rest of the year, and it offered no hope for a rebound in the current quarter. "I didn't see any improvement at the end of the quarter that gives me encouragement that we're at the bottom and coming out of it," said Chris Liddell, Microsoft's chief financial officer. Revenue in the last quarter slipped 6 percent to $13.6 billion, missing analysts' expectations for $14.1 billion. Even so, Microsoft shares gained 3 percent in extended trading after the earnings report, having closed earlier at $18.92, up 14 cents. "It was not expected to be a very good quarter, and I think it was not a great quarter, but you've seen a lot of not-great quarters in last month or so," said Cowen and Co. analyst Walter Pritchard. The results weren't pretty, but the software maker did "the two things you can do in a tough environment -- try to keep costs down, and make sure customers still want to buy your products," said Taunya Sell, an analyst for Ragen MacKenzie, a division of Wells Fargo. Microsoft said the current quarter would probably still be weak in the markets for PCs and computer servers. Other technology companies have offered mixed assessments about whether a recovery is in sight. 2) Last week, Intel Corp. CEO Paul Otellini raised some hopes when he said the PC market had bottomed out in the first quarter. And on Thursday, EMC Corp. CEO Joe Tucci predicted that spending on information technology "has reached or is very near the bottom" and should rebound in the second half of this year. He made those comments even as EMC reported that first-quarter profit dropped 23 percent and the company planned more cost cuts. 3) Other executives have been more cautious. "I don't know how someone could say we've hit bottom in the current economic climate," Dirk Meyer, the CEO of Intel's main rival, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., said Tuesday. 4) Even as Microsoft and EMC reported profit and revenue declines Thursday, two e-commerce companies fared better. Leading online retailer Amazon.com Inc. said profit rose 24 percent and revenue jumped 18 percent. And Netflix Inc. posted a 68 percent leap in profit, as more people turned to its DVD-by-mail service as an affordable entertainment option during the recession.
shorted GOld at 911.50 , target 905 Gold may get bit weaker as equity market will be strong at least thru market opening
1) Ford posts $1.4 billion 1Q loss, burns less cash- AP Ford Motor Co. reported a first-quarter loss of $1.4 billion Friday and said it burned through less of its cash, emphasizing that it doesn't expect to seek any of the government assistance that is keeping the rest of the Detroit Three alive. 2) Ford, Microsoft provide a lift 3) American Express, too, following well-received results. Futures point to a higher open on Wall Street. 4) Also on Friday's agenda: bank stress-test methodology details due this afternoon.
Gold pulled between these bull and bear factors , so exited with mid level profit .. a) strong equity market bearish for gold b) week dollar bullish for gold