In Bhutan, A Stock Trade a Day Keeps Stress Away

Traders seeking a break from volatile global markets may want to head to Bhutan's bourse, where stocks are traded on just four computers -- when they have not crashed -- only twice a week.

"I've got one order to sell 2,820 shares," said 23-year-old Deki Peldon, the only broker for today's short trading hours in Thimphu, the capital of the tiny Himalayan kingdom.

"It's taken 2 to 3 weeks to find a buyer."

Welcome to the Royal Bhutan stock market, where just four brokers work and which will trade about $3 million shares this year, about what many financiers may deal with in the blink of an eye. The average daily trade in New York is more than 1 billion.

In a Buddhist country where national wealth is measured by Gross National Happiness -- an idea that spiritual and environmental health are just as important as material well-being -- the exchange is crawling slowly along as the country and its $1.3 billion economy tentatively embraces globalisation.

The outside world is coming to Bhutan, slowly. Television arrived here in 1999 and there are now around 10,000 Internet connections in a country of under 700,000 people.

Bhutan still has no traffic lights since the first one was withdrawn after protests from residents that it was unsightly.

HELPING THE GROSS NATIONAL HAPPINESS

In the stock exchange's bare trading floor, computers sit on sparse wooden desks. There are no TVs on the walls, no shouts into telephones, no empty coffee cups or discarded paper.

Peldon, dressed in traditional Bhutanese dress, typed in her one trade for the day before an 11 am deadline, when buy and sell orders are matched up by computer software that has not been updated since 1993.

Total market capitalisation in 2008 was around $171 million, with 19 listed companies that include cement firms, banks and a newspaper. That compares with the capitalisation of nearly $67 billion for Mcdonalds.

There is no Sensex Index, but compilers of company listings say prices will often not change for three months. Read More...

Rupee at Near 1-wk High on Broad Dollar Drop

The rupee strengthened to its highest in nearly a week on Wednesday boosted by hopes for inflows into the local share market with a broad dollar drop versus majors also underpinning market sentiment.

* The dollar was broadly on the defensive on Wednesday while the euro and higher-yielding currencies extended impressive gains as investor risk appetite showed little sign of waning ahead of the year end.

* Almost all Asian units were higher against the dollar. For a snapshot see

* At 9:06 a.m. the partially convertible rupee was at 46.16/17 per dollar, after having opened at 46.14, its highest since Nov. 26. Rupee had closed at 46.31/32 on Tuesday.

* The unit has rebounded more than 12.7 percent from a record low of 52.2 in early March on foreign portfolio flows of $15.4 billion into Indian equities this year.

* At 0336 GMT, the MSCI index of Asian stocks ex-Japan was up 1.2 percent while the Nifty India stock futures traded in Singapore were 0.3 percent higher, both pointing to higher opening in the local stock market india.

Euro Ministers See Minimal Fallout from Dubai

European finance ministers said on Tuesday that Dubai's debt troubles would have little impact on their region, which is emerging from recession.

"What we understand today is there is no systemic risk," French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said. "It's not a drama for the world of finance and the impact seems to be essentially regional."

She briefed reporters after a regular meeting with fellow ministers from the euro zone and said European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet had reassured ministers that "there is little consequence for European banks".

Similar reassurances came from Luxembourg's Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the meeting.

"The fallout ... will be very minor indeed and there is no cause for concern there," he told a news conference.

"The events in Dubai are not going to stop the euro zone returning to growth."

Global share market took a pounding when news broke last week that state-controlled Dubai World, which led the emirate's transformation into a regional hub for finance, investment and tourism, was unable to pay its debt.

But on Tuesday, Asian, European and U.S. stocks regained ground following the lead from Wall Street overnight as fears of contagion eased, despite further falls in stock prices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.

BSE Sensex Seen Flat to Lower

The BSE Sensex may open flat to lower on Thursday after Asian markets were hit by worries about the pace of economic recovery, although the recent strength of inflows from foreign funds is expected to offer support.

Banks and financial stocks will be in focus as the government has set reform of the insurance sector as a priority for the parliament session that begins on Thursday.

"We may open unchanged or slightly lower with global markets in the red. But the market sentiment stays positive with all the liquidity flowing in," said Kunal Sukhani, manager of institutional equities at Asian Markets Securities.

Wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy will be in focus after its German unit REpower Systems signed a contract to supply wind turbines with a total capacity of 18.45 megawatts to U.S. firm Heritage Sustainable Energy LLC.

Bank funds lead mutual fund gainers in Sept

Funds investing in bank stocks recorded the sharpest jump in net values in September as shares of financial firms rose on prospects of better corporate results and hopes the credit growth would start ticking up.

Banking sector mutual funds gained an average 15.8 percent during the month, outperforming the 9.3 percent rise in India's benchmark 30-share index, data from global fund tracker Lipper, a Thomson Reuters company, showed.

"If you are betting that the Indian economy will do well despite the global meltdown... this is the sector which will obviously outperform," J. Venkatesan, a fund manager at Sundaram BNP Paribas Asset Management, said.

"Valuation comfort is much more better here than any other sector," Venkatesan added.

He said most state-run banks were available at a reasonable 1.5 times their price to book value, while returns on equity were about 18 percent and improving.

Indian firms will start releasing their quarterly results from the second week of October, and advance tax payments indicate robust profits.

That should ease pressure on likely bad loans for banking firms and also boost prospects for credit off-take as corporates return to health and revive expansion plans.

Top lender State Bank of India climbed little over a quarter in September to 2,195.70, its highest close since February last year, as investors expected strong corporate earnings to boost the bank's profits and ease bad debt worries.

Rupee Slightly Higher; Stocks Open Awaited

The rupee gained marginally on Monday, boosted by a rise in other regional units, but lack of clarity on foreign fund flows ahead of the Share Market India open prevented a further rise.

* At 9:06 a.m. the partially convertible rupee was at 46.48/49 per dollar, marginally higher compared with its Friday's close of 46.50/51. On Thursday, the rupee had dropped to as low as 46.82, its lowest since Oct. 7.

* The Morgan Stanley index of Asian stocks ex-Japan and the Nifty India stock futures traded in Singapore were both up 0.2 percent higher, pointing to a flat to higher start in the local stock market.

* The dollar index, a gauge of the U.S. unit's performance versus six majors, was 0.2 percent lower. All Asian units were stronger compared to the dollar.

* The euro rose to its highest in 14 months against the dollar on Monday after a report saying China should raise holdings of the euro and the yen in its foreign reserves prompted investors to sell the dollar for the single currency.

Ford Canada plant idled due to India labor unrest

Ford Motor Co said on Friday it will idle one of its Canadian plants next week due to a shortage of transmission parts that stems from a labor dispute in India.

Ford said it will close its Oakville, Ontario, plant, where it manufactures the Ford Edge, Ford Flex and Lincoln MKX, from Oct. 26 to 30.

"The recent labor unrest at Rico Auto Industries and the Haryana state in India has resulted in a shortage of parts from Rico," said Ford Canada spokeswoman Lauren More.

"We are monitoring the situation and continue to work with Rico to reduce the impact on our operations."

Media reports said an ongoing strike at the Rico plant, just outside New Delhi, turned violent after an employee died on Sunday during a protest.

About 3,000 in workers in Oakville will be affected by the shutdown, said Canadian Auto Workers union local president Gary Beck.

Formal contract talks between the union and Ford on lowering manufacturing costs are scheduled to resume next week, Beck said. The two sides last met formally in September, but have had informal discussions since then.

Ford is looking for similar contract concessions that the CAW agreed to with struggling General Motors and Chrysler earlier this year.

European Shares Fall After U.S. Housing Data

European shares fell in afternoon trading on Tuesday after data showed new construction of U.S. homes rose by less than expected in September.

At 1236 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.2 percent after hitting a one-year high of 1,031 earlier in the session.

The U.S. Commerce Department said housing starts rose 0.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 590,000 units, below market expectations for 610,000. August's housing starts were revised down to 587,000 units from the previously reported 598,000 units.

Asia Shares Slip on Earnings Blues, Dollar Up

Asian shares pulled further away from 14-month peaks on Monday after disappointing earnings from U.S. corporate bellwethers such as General Electric Co spurred some investors to take profits.

The dollar edged up, thanks mainly to a retreat in the euro as European policymakers voiced some concerns that the single currency's surge is approaching levels that would damage the euro zone's recovery. Eurogroup Chairman Jean-Claude Juncker said he was concerned about a continuous euro rise.

The U.S. currency's gains helped nudge gold and oil prices lower, though activity was limited as investors focused on what the next batch of quarterly earnings will say about how companies are managing the recovery from the deepest global recession in decades.

Some 135 of the companies in the S&P 500 will report quarterly results this week, with the battered financial sector expected to post the highest growth rate, according to Thomson Reuters data. Read More...

Financial Portfolio - A Mirror of Your Financial Accomplishments

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Latest Stock Quotes

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Sept qtr corp advance tax seen up 15 pct

Latest business news india : India's corporate advance tax in the September quarter is expected to rise 14.7 percent to 440.10 billion rupees ($9.14 billion), a finance ministry official said on Monday, adding it is expected to see better growth in the December quarter.

Corporate advance tax had fallen 3.7 percent in the June quarter, the official, who declined to be named, told reporters.

Source url: http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-42616720090922

Indian shares at highest close in over 15 months

India's main sensex index rose 1.5 percent to its highest close in more than 15 months on Tuesday in anticipation of stronger quarterly earnings and hopes for a pickup in consumer spending.

Financial issues led by State Bank of India, the country's largest lender, firmed as advance taxes paid by them for the September quarter were sharply higher than a year ago,indicating robust profit rise.

Banks were also helped by hopes the central bank will relax accounting rules for their government bond holdings, a move that will lower provisioning for notional mark-to-market losses, traders said.

"Some good advance tax numbers contributed to the rally today. Whatever we have seen so far is good, and expect other figures to be robust as well," said Neeraj Dewan, director of Quantum Securities.

The 30-share BSE index .BSESN rose 1.48 percent, or 240.26 points, to 16,454.45,its highest close since late May 2008. All but three of its constituents gained.

India Hot Stocks:Jet Airways down on simulated strike

The following stocks were on the move at the BSE on Tuesday.

At 10:38 a.m., the benchmark 30-share BSE index .BSESN was up 0.32 percent at 16,067.41 points.

The 50-share National Stock Exchange Index .NSEI was up 0.27 percent at 4,795.95 points.

Jet Airways Ltd fell as much as 13 percent to 221.8 rupees after the airline said its pilots resorted to a simulated strike, hurting operations.

Shares pared losses and were trading at 249.5 rupees, down 2.25 percent.

Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/indiaMktRpt/idINBOM16385620090908

0.2 pct rise in Indian Shares

Indian shares in Indian stock market nudged up 0.2 percent on Friday after falling 3.3 percent over the past four days, but worries about a weak monsoon and doubts over the sustainability of a global recovery kept investors cautious.

"Even though there is a rise today, there is not much conviction," Ambareesh Baliga, vice president at Karvy Stock Broking, said. "There are no triggers to lead the market significantly higher."

Read More: http://in.reuters.com/article/indiaMktRpt/idINBOM45274220090904

India grows 6.1 pct y/y in June qtr; monsoon a risk

According to Money Market News India's economy grew 6.1 percent in the June quarter from a year earlier, roughly in line with forecasts, as government stimulus measures helped spur demand, but a poor monsoon threatens to crimp growth later in the year even as it drives prices higher.

Weakness in private consumption combined with looming inflation complicates the Reserve Bank of India's exit from its expansionary monetary policy, with some economists expecting tightening measures to begin only in 2010.

"The RBI's dilemma, between hiking policy rates and hurting growth or staying pat but risking higher inflation expectations, only gets worse," said Nomura economist Sonal Varma.

Read More : http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-42096720090831

Reforms key to push econ to high growth

According to Business News Economic reforms are needed to steer the Indian economy to a 9 percent growth path, while the immediate challenge is to tackle poor monsoon rains, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Tuesday.

The economy will grow at around 6 percent in the current financial year that began in April 2009, he told a gathering at an event organised by channel ET Now.

"Mitigating the impact of the deficient monsoon and the rural economy is a high priority," he said.

Growth has fallen sharply to 6.7 percent in 2007/08 from rates of around 9 percent seen in recent years as the global financial crisis hit exports and dented consumer confidence.

Read More : http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-41957320090825

New challenges put reforms

According to India Top News Rising food prices and a possible drought. Swine flu and a damaging corporate war. Even a diplomatic setback with rivals Pakistan.

Three months into office, India's ruling coalition is besieged by a slew of crises, undercutting the momentum from a resounding election victory and making it harder to carry through bold promises of policy change and economic reforms.

"The government is on the back foot. Its priorities have to shift to giving relief from the drought and high food prices," said V.K. Sharma, head of research at Anagram Stock Broking.

"In this situation policymaking can take a backseat and any spending to cushion the farm sector from the drought will widen the (fiscal) deficit. All the talk about a clear election mandate allowing the government a freer hand is now gone.

Read More: http://in.reuters.com/article/topNews/idINIndia-41843920090819

Rupee rises tracking gains

The rupee rose in money market on Tuesday, a day after posting its biggest one-day drop in five-and-a-half months, as stocks pulled back from a slide.
At 10:57 a.m. (0527 GMT), the partially convertible rupee was at 48.80/81 per dollar, 0.3 percent higher than the previous close of 48.955/965.

Dealers said gains made by euro and pound sterling against the dollar underpinned sentiment.

"The rupee has risen because the euro and pound are up from where we left them yesterday," a dealer with a private sector bank said.

Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idINIndia-41811120090818

Satyam gains in choppy market

Shares of Mahindra Satyam rose in an otherwise lacklustre market today, ending 5.41 percent higher at 112.95 rupees.

During market hours on Wednesday, Larsen & Toubro Ltd sought permission from market regulators to sell its stake in outsourcer Mahindra Satyam Ltd, according to a company spokesman.

L&T which lost out in the race for a controlling race in Satyam is considering the exit route, but under current conditions of sale, bidders for the company are barred from selling their stake. SATYAM/

L&T’s stake in Satyam dropped from 12 percent to 6.9 percent (valued at nearly 9 billion rupees or $190 million) post sale of the outsourcer to Mahindra, according to Thomson Reuters data. Institutional investors hold 10.39 percent, insiders or stakeholders 50.18 percent and mutual funds about 8.45 percent.

Read more: http://blogs.reuters.com/moneyonthemarkets