Amazon.es to land in Spain before the end of the year

The Amazon online store will open in  Spain before the end of the year. The landing of Amazon.es will begin with the sale of securities on paper, while the "ebooks" take a little longer to arrive. 

On 14 September, Amazon's vice president for Europe, Greg Greeley, visiting Spain to share "a very important announcement" that Amazon spokesman did not specify, but is expected to be related to the release date of the page the ". is."
 
The editor of Roca Editorial, Blanca Rosa Roca, last August the company closed a distribution deal with Amazon to Spain and that the only detail known about the arrival of Amazon.es is that there will be "after the summer."
 
Roca has highlighted the "great advantage" available to Amazon, which according to this editor is in "that features the Kindle directly linked to the library, which will facilitate the steps to making any purchases of content."
 
For Luis Solana, founder of Books of the Asteroid, which is negotiating a publishing agreement Amazon.es distribution through, "Amazon has already proven in the United States has the capacity to create and develop digital book market, which until now have been achieved industry players working in Spain. "
 
The online store Amazon has become the largest and most diversified online sales portal in the world since its launch in 1995.

China Increase Rates Gold Sink

Because worried that China will reduce the inflationary pressure through the interest on futures, the gold stock Friday largely slides.

New York Commercial Exchange COMEX Department in December finalizes the gold stock fell 37.80 US dollars, reports each ounce 1365.50 US dollars, the decline range is 2.7%, has created since the beginning of July the odd-numbered days greatest decline range.the FactSet Research data demonstrated that in the contract plate is lowest drops to 1359.30 US dollars. Time gold stock Asia trades then fell above 30 US dollars, when New York opening price has the bounce.

After other bulk commodity as well as the global stock market appear falls, the mental strain the investor starts to sell the gold.The gold stock fell 2.3% this week, the decline range was biggest for the past four weeks in for one week, also after was continuously two week rise, fell for the first time.

Chicago LaSalle Stock Company trades Matt Zeman to indicate that if Chinese interest on futures, then other countries also with the interest on futures. Then the gold will take refuge from danger the inflation risk the attraction then to weaken.

STS Group Capital In Good Health

STS Group announces that it has completed the capital increase to finance the acquisition of 100% “of an international group specialized in computer software and communications documentary,” whose name is not specified.

After the operation, annual sales of software company specializing in archiving and digitization should quadruple to 400 million euros.

This morning in the Paris Bourse, the action STS welcomes new Presber by an increase of 7% which is 13 euros.

A letter of intent to acquire has been validated on 14 February. The exclusive negotiating period will begin April 5, when starting an audit of five weeks after which the purchase should be confirmed.

The target company makes 250 million euros in turnover and 9 million euros in operating profit. Its balance sheet is free of bank debt. The value of “equity” is around 20 million euros, said STS Group.

The capital increase was subscribed by most funds that are shareholders. It included several stages: First, an unconditional tranche of 2.3 million euros on the basis of a share to 16 euros. Then, a second tranche TEPA unconditionally to 2.5 million based on a stock whose price is set by the board of directors between 16 and 20 euros. And finally, a third tranche conditional on achieving the target of 1.7 million on the basis of a share to 16 euros.

The remaining funds will be provided by a debt incurred by the target company.

After this operation, STS Group expects to make a consolidated annual turnover of around 400 million euros. In 2010, sales reached 99.1 million euros and net profit after minority interests of 9.9 million.

U.S. Stock Market Gets a Boost

As of Monday, the fortunes of the U.S. stock market were going pretty downhill. The major stock index, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), saw their day’s business close at 12090 points, which is 80 points lower than that at that at the start of the day. The reason behind this market slump was found to be the continued crisis in Libya which meant that the price of crude oil remained high. The other major factor influencing the market was the drop in price of technology stocks after the semiconductor sector had to go through the process of downgrade.


However, Tuesday brought about a change in the market fortune. The news of an impending end to the Libyan crisis with reports of Moammar Gadhafi seeking ways to step down brought about a reduction in the price of crude oil. This prospect of a peaceful settlement to the problem aided the stock market to start their business on Tuesday in a slightly better state. The stock prices were more than that at hour on Monday.

Among the companies whose stock value are under spotlight at the moment is the convenience store operative Urban Outfitters Inc. Value of their shares are predicted to fall after the owners published a report showing the sales and profit of the last quarter to be less than the current investment market situation was supposed to generate. In Globex, electronic transactions were heightened with the fall of crude oil price to $105.08, 36 cents less than it had been on Monday. At one point in the day’s trade, the price of oil fell to $103.33, an intraday low.

In European stock markets too, things were looking up. The progress of the day saw some increase in the prices of stocks. The stock index of German DAX 30 was up by 0.2 percent. In the Asian stock market, majority of the stocks finished their day with gains. The Japanese stock index of Nikkei 225 Average ended their day’s business with a 0.2 percent increase.

The futures stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJH11) were calculated at 12105 points, an increase by 27 points. Stock index of Standard and Poor’s 500 (SPH11) also reported notable gains with the value of futures stocks rising by 4.50 points. They ended their day at 1313.60 points. Nasdaq 100 registered an increase in the value of future stocks too which at the close of the day’s business had increased by 2.75 points to 2327.25 points.

The day was more or less quite with only one notable meeting scheduled to take place. It was between U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, the President of European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet and Axel Weber, the outgoing president of the German Bundesbank. Among the currencies, price of the U.S. dollar rose against the yen and the euro. While the euro price dropped by 0.3 percent to $1.3925, versus the yen it rose to ¥82.462, an increment of 0.2 percent. Initial round of the deal between the Boeing Co. and the Hong Kong Airlines Ltd. was concluded. By this deal, the Boeing will sell 38 jets to the Hong Kong Airlines Ltd.

U.S. Stock Market Fails to Capitalize on Investor Mood Upswing

Report published by the Automatic Data Processing Firm regarding betterment in the job market situation proved unable to improve the sad condition of the U.S. stock market. This is in spite of the fact that investors were more confident while investing, following the publication of the report. At the end of business session last day, the price of the chief stocks slumped by more than 1 percent over their rising prices. This may be the reason why the stock market failed to make any considerable gains today. Investors, who had seen the market close yesterday with a loss running into three digit figures, were reluctant to take any major risks by investing heavily at this point. The tension over the price of oil also proved to be a major factor in the continuing slump of the fortunes of the stock market. The morning saw the market register some gains. But as the day progressed, this gain was changed into loss and the rest of the working hour was spent in an attempt to slightly rescue the situation. The Dow was at a gain of a measly 40 points an hour before the close of the day’s business. This summed up a day perfectly which saw the price of the American dollar slide down by 0.3 percent against euro, pound and yen. Prices of goods were fluctuating also with gold and soya bean seeing increase in their values.


The economic data which was released at the end of the day’s business underlined the depressing condition of the market with only a handful of stocks registering any profit. At the closure of the NYSE today, DOW (Dow Jones Industrial Average) calculated a gain of 8.63 points with an EOD of 12,066.65. NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) also managed to show a gain of 22.82. Their EOD was 8,338.67 points. The stocks of National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ) gained 10.42 points to have an EOD of 2,747.83 S&P 500 (SPX) had a gain of 2.10 points, showing their EOD at 1,308.43. However, BEL 20 (BEL20) stock price fell by 23.30 points. Their EOD was 2,689.37. CAC 40 (CAC40) also suffered losses. Their stock price dropped by 32.83 points. The EOD was 4,034.32. FTSE100 (UKX100) also failed to make any gains; their price falling by 20.87 points and ended with an EOD of 5,914.89. NIKKEI 225 (NIK/O) shed 261.65 points to finish their day’s transactions with an EOD of 10,492.38 points.

On the other hand, the labor market conditions continued to change for the better slowly but at a steady pace. Number of jobs rose by 217000 against an expected rise of 170000. Majority of the districts were able to show significant growth in their quantity of product manufactured despite the cost of production to be borne by the manufacturers having increased considerably. Wages of the workers did not pose any major problems and production was carried out smoothly. The net amount of retail sales has also increased in most parts of the country.

The American Stock Exchange (AMEX) estimated advanced stock prices to be 253 while the declined stocks were calculated to be 230. 34 stock prices remain unchanged. Price of 27 stocks touched a new high while 5 stocks saw their value fall to a new low.

US Stock Futures Rise as Jobless Claims Decline

US stocks experienced a lucky turn of fate on Thursday. Rate of unemployment unexpectedly went low and hit a point which is the lowest in the last three years. This obviously gave the market a strong push and let to good profit, especially when it was completely unforeseen. According to the statistics reported by the Labor Department the number of jobless claims recorded last week was 368,000. It went down by 20,000. It is the lowest recorded number of claims since May, 2008.


The downfall in the unemployment statistics resulted in a great upward activity in the stocks. Dow Jones Industrial Average had previously gone up by 85 points before the report. The recent dip in the unemployment rate added a further 108 points to 12,154 of Dow Jones. S&P 500 also benefitted from the recent decline in unemployment rate. It gained 14.5 points to 1,320.3. Nasdaq also reaped a good harvest. Nasdaq 100 futures (NDH11 2,372, +0.25, +0.01%) climbed 23.75 points to 2,347.

US business productivity went up by 2.6% in the fourth quarter as a separate report showed. The government had initially estimated a similar surge. Speculations are high that later in the year a price hike may emerge. In such circumstances the European Central Bank announced on Thursday that they are not going to change the rates but keep it at 1%. ECB Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said that in order to find a solution to inflation issues a close and continuous survey of the financial market is necessary.

The worries regarding the rising oil prices were eased a bit on Wednesday as the stocks gradually went towards a higher point helped by data signaling strength in the job market. When the market closed the price of oil was $102 a barrel. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA 12,258, +191.40, +1.59%) reported a gain of 8.78 points, or slightly less than 0.1%. On Thursday crude oil futures edged down. Crude for April delivery fell $1.39 to $100.84 a barrel in Globex electronic trading. Venezuela President Hugo Chavez made an attempt to strike a treaty of peace in Libya. Oil prices had dropped reportedly following this news. But the reduction in oil prices was transformed into a hike once again. The reason is the recent development of fresh air strikes launched against the Libyan town of Brega.

A strong performance for international stock market was reflected in the latest upward pace of the US stocks future. The idea was supported by the recent statistics. U.K.’s FTSE 100 index (UK:UKX 6,005, +90.20, +1.52%) went up 1.2% in midday trading and Japan’s Nikkei 225 Average closing up 0.9%.

The Institute for Supply Management’s nonmanufacturing index for February will be released at 10 a.m. Economists predict that the index will remain at 59.4% as it had in last January. Friday will reveal another set of statistics. It is the closely monitored nonfarm-payrolls figures for February. Stocks that could experience serious trading on Thursday include News Corp. (NWS 18.49, +0.34, +1.87%) after the U.K. government approved it to buy the 61% of British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC (UK:BSY 823.00, 0.00, 0.00%) it doesn’t already own, on the condition that it spins off the satellite broadcaster’s news channel.

New Regulations for US Banks

S&P 500 futures went over fair value when it rose to 3.6 points. The formula it used evaluates pricing by taking into account the following factors- interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones and Nasdaq also were on a high. Dow Jones industrial average futures went up by a good 18 points and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 8.75 points.


Oil prices went up by 1% and the price now stands at US$97.90 per barrel. Experts fear that price hike in oil will affect other sectors and consequently equities may hit a low. It was reported that US regulator Sheila Bair warning the US banks. She was reported as warning the big international banks of US to redesign their undertakings. She suggested the banks to plan their ventures in a low budget unless they gather the sufficient backup to combat any further financial melt-down.


Bair told the Reuters Future Face of Finance Summit that more foreign subsidiaries are required to be set up by multinational companies. She further said that multinationals should redesign their legal structures so that it becomes easier for regulators to liquidate them if necessary. Bair, the chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, said that the popular idea that some big firms will never fail is baseless. She was reported as zestfully saying that she wants to spend the time till her near-at-hand retirement in doing away with such misconception regarding the stocks. Even if it compels firms to divest business, it should not be denied.


Bair stressed on the fact that if banks are not prepared to combat a sudden bankruptcy, they should consider cutting down on their ventures immediately. She advised investors to be patient with the bank. She said that investors should not get angry at slow returns and low rates. This, in most cases, shows that their deposit is in safe hands.


Bair’s warnings were specially aimed at Citigroup, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase. These banks are scheduled to submit their ‘living wills’ to regulators by the end of the year. Other G20 countries have agreed in principle to an orderly liquidation process for big firms. But The United States is more advanced in the "living will" process than other G20 countries. The reason to submit a "living will" is to show the regulators that the bank is capable of facing and dealing with a sudden bankruptcy situation. This rule has been formulated to avoid the nasty bankruptcy situation of Lehman Brothers under Bush administration in 2008. Bair expressed her faith in the living will process.


Bair announced that some small scale banks might have to file for a shutdown. The larger financial banks should also file for a remodel. Bair made it clear that the banks need state in crystal clear terms why they do not need subsidization and give legitimate reasons for it. A former general counsel at Bair's agency said that banks might have to struggle to meet these new criteria while at the same time trying to increase customer value.

US Stock Market Analysis

US stocks ended another month well on a high note on Monday. This was boosted by Warren Buffett’s bullish comments. But the market could have reached a higher note if not for the increasing oil prices. Possibilities of the stocks hitting a standstill were indicated from the insufficient volume. The number of shares bought and sold in New York stock exchange was 7.29 billion. These shares included NYSE, Amex and Nasdaq. The number is a huge disappointment compared to last year’s figure. Last year the number shares traded daily on an average was 8.47 billion. 95.89 points were gained by Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Standard and Poor’s 500 Index gained 7.36 points. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained a nominal 1.22 points.

Reuters reported that President Barack Obama wished to discuss the budget issues with Republican House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner. Boehner was called by the President on Tuesday for this matter. White House spokesman Jay Carney reported to a White House news briefing that they had a good discussion. Carney said that he expected that the discussion will lead to some solutions. He said that the Congress has concentrated on some cuts which will probably be univocally supported by all. He further said that Obama will do his best to prevent a US government shutdown. Obama will never support cuts that bring US economy or national security under jeopardy. He would curtail investments so that future growth is not hindered.

Investors feel that rising oil prices will stall the process of the recovery of US economy. Their fear was confirmed by a drop of stocks on Tuesday. However .S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke expressed opposite opinion. According to him the oil prices will not affect the US market much. But investors did not buy his view. They fear that recent political turmoil in Libya will affect the world’s largest oil exporter Saudi Arabia and oil supply will suffer. Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist at RDM Financial in Westport, Connecticut, said that the political disturbance in the Middle-East is currently the centre of attention. The most important issue is that whether Saudi Arabia will manage to remain unaffected.

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI dropped 76.25 points, or 0.62 percent, to 12,150.09. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC lost 26.54 points, or 0.95 percent, to 2,755.73. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX fell 10.56 points, or 0.80 percent, to 1,316.66.

As the muddle in the Middle-East continues to trouble US economy, statistics are showing that the world’s leading economy is restoring. In February the U.S. manufacturing sector grew at its fastest rate since May 2004. The market reported a mixed output of gains and losses. Utilities, healthcare and consumer staples gained as expected since these sectors are known to gain during troubled times. But the cyclical sectors had huge losses. These were marked indications of defensive stance in the market.

The S&P's consumer staples index .GSPS rose 0.12 percent, while materials .GSPM was off 1.3 percent and financials .GSPF fell 1.2 percent. Consumer staples Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) and Coca-Cola Co (KO.N) helped shield the Dow. Wal-Mart rose 0.8 percent to $52.41, while Coca-Cola was up 1.9 percent to $65.12.

Stock Market Commentary

The US Stock Market is looking good so far. There were some roller coasters today. But they were expected and did not throw the Investors in hysterical panic attacks. The stock market fell 2% last week which to most people was not alarming at all. But there are possibilities of a further downfall in the stock market with the upsurging oil prices.

Weak tech and energy stocks held the growth of the market back big time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 40 points. The stability in oil prices gave the market a good head start. An increase in house-hold income established a strong foundation for the market. Increase in personal spending gave the stocks a slight push.

Among the small capital companies the shares of Medicis Pharmaceuticals reached a high point when the company struck a deal with Teva Pharmaceuticals. The shares PDL Biopharma also saw a high point when the company put an end to its dispute with Novartis. PDL made the truce by confirming to pay Novartis a certain amount. Shares of Auto parts maker Amerigon reached a shooting 12.4% followed by the company’s claim to buy WET Automotive systems. The shares of Royale Energy have doubled since last month. The stocks of Samson Oil and Gas, Parker Drilling, Kodiak Oil and Gas and BPG resources are also on a gaining front.

The Indian stock market today opened on a high note but faced a temporary ebb just prior to the budget speech. After the budget the market revived its upward pace. But the market faced another decline and the early gains of the day ultimately proved to be ineffectual. The NSE-Nifty closed higher by around 30 points. The Pharma sector did not get much attention in the budget and it closed on bitter-sweet note. Asian and European indices are not promising enough either.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee reveals in the budget the Government’s plan to collect RS. 40,000 crore from disinvestment programme in 2011-2012. This news highlighted the position of the shares of public sector undertakings in the market. The government will spend 1.6 lakh crore in social projects, 17% more than last year. Mukherjee stated that the national economy is strong enough to bear any foreign insurgency.

The minimum alternate tax for heavy industries was increased by 50 basis points. This step took a huge toll on the Reliance HeavyWeight Industries. It fell 0.1% to 964.65 from the day’s high of Rs. 994. Reliance Industries is in talks with Japan’s Orix Corporation to strike a joint venture. Reliance will soon seal a deal with Uttar Pradesh government regarding purchase of power. ONGC has announced discoveries in Cambey, Krishna ad Godavari. This has given the shares of ONGC a boost.

Upsurges in oil price continue to trouble the stocks of automations. Ashok Layland, Bajaj Auto, Hero Honda Motors and Tata Motors went down between 0.53% and 2.36%. However, Maruti Suzuki India rose 3.07%.

Both US and Indian stock markets have given mixed outputs. Growth was balanced with decline. However, signs of further growth are evident.

Here is a quick update on US stock market today

On Monday the stock-market showed clear indications that the US economy is recovering at a good pace. The tax reduction enforced last month caused the income of the consumers to soar high. Statistics tell that the personal income of American laborers went up by 1 percent last month. This is the largest percentage of increase by far in two years. According to experts the increasing oil prices is no big deal.


However, the spending percentage did not increase proportionately with the income percentage. The percentage of expenditure became 0.2% to 0.1%, thus gaining only 0.1%. The slow pace of the expenditure index brings home the fact that consumers have not been able to rely upon US economy entirely. People are reluctant about their investments even as the market improves. According to some experts the poor weather may have stood as an obstacle in the way of the spending growth last month. They are expecting the spending index to go up as the year advances. This will help to strengthen the economy. Current stock market signs are very promising also. This minuscule increase in the expenditure percentage boosted the expenditure rate up to an amazing $10.59 trillion. This rate is 7.4% higher than the rate of recession-hit December, 2008. Economists predict that the reduction on social security tax will add an extra $1000 to the family’s income amount.

Although, all the predictions of the economists are not positive but there is hardly any sign that the number of jobless people will go down. Moreover, the pace of housing recovery is not expected to be very high. But these negative sides are expected to be driven away by the end of this year. The strong market in Asia and the new investments in equipments and software are supposed to give the market a new impetus.

The raging rebellion of Libya continues to be a difficulty in the oil market. It has reduced Libya’s oil output by 50%. Foreign companies have ordered their employees to leave Libya. This has resulted in a great shortage of man-power in extracting oil. The US secretary of State Hilary Clinton said that US is trying every possible solution with Libya and no stone will be left unturned. The tension regarding the global oil market decreased a lot when some Libyan ports re-opened. Saudi Arabia’s encouraging approach towards oil export caused the oil price to come down to about $97 a barrel. This is definitely great news for the investment market. But the assurance of Saudi Arabia of steady oil supply has eased the situation to a great extent. It will possibly prevent further upsurges in the oil price.

New deals signed or proposed by Ventas Inc., Australia’s Equinox Mineral’s Limited gave the market the much needed boost. Ventas inc. announced to buy Nationwide Health Properties for $5.8 billion. Ventas Inc. re-asserted their position as the biggest US owner of senior housing by this venture.

US President Barack Obama assured that the state’s attempts to balance the budget will not deprive the citizens of their collective bargaining rights. The president said in the White House that while everyone will have to make some sacrifices to revive the finances. But he assured that the onus will not entirely be on the laborers.

The US market closed on an optimistic note so far and showed promises of further improvement.

Oil prices ease, global stock up on Friday

As the markets opened on Friday, the US stocks edge higher owing to an ease in oil prices. While Nasdaq Composite rose 17 points (0.6%), S&P 500 rose 5.5 points (0.4%), and Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 32 points (0.3%), the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index dipped down 0.1% and closed at 1306.10. The high ups come as the oil prices have come down, hovering around $96 to $97 per barrel. April delivery reported a rise of 11 cents (0.1%) in its oil prices, amounting to $97.20 a barrel.


This week there was a loss of 285 points (2.5%) in the Stocks, as reported by Dow Jones. The loss was reported for three sessions back to back, with Monday and Tuesday’s dips touching down to triple digits for the first time since June. A direct relation between the oil prices and global share and stock financial values seem evident with this result. The share values listed on all major stocks are still higher for the month of February despite the pullback in oil prices since Thursday evening.

According to a report from the US bureau of Economic Analysis, there is an increase in the real GDP (Gross Domestic Product). The increase was at an annual rate of 2.8% in the fourth quarter. This was much lesser than the 3.3% increase feared and forecasted by the economists. The index is expected to remain static at the present 75.1.

European stock markets also showed signs of easing on Friday, after receiving assurances from Saudi Arabia that the Libyan political crisis will not significantly affect the global oil production. The International Energy Agency (IEA) assured the investors that it is ready to cover all shortfalls by releasing its emergency stock whenever required. By Friday, the Stoxx Europe 600 rose to 0.5%, the DAX index (Frankfurt) rose 0.4%, CAC-40 index (Paris) rose 0.6%, and Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 1%.

In spite of the look up, uncertainty on Moammar Gadhafi’s power and the political condition in Libya continue to affect market sentiments. The present situation is an indicator that the unrest is not going to be settled anytime soon, hence the investors are cautious to take any step. Normally, Libya produces an average of 1.6 million barrels of crude oil per day, but the output has gone down heavily owing to the present violent situation in the country. In London, the prices of Brent Crude oil went up 76 cents, and closed at $ 112.14 a barrel, $7 below the high point of Thursday.

The Asian stock market was mostly on the higher side on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.7%, the Hang Seng (Hongkong) rose 1.8% whereas the Shanghai Composite closed flat.

Reporting on the foreign exchange market, the Euro continued to soar while the Yen and Swiss Franc were steady against the dollar. The dollar rose against the Euro and British Pound. The gasoline price rose to an average of 6 cents, according to a report from AAA, closing at 12 cents higher this week.