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U.S. Retail Sales Rise More Than Forecast on Electronics, Autos

Forex-Master — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 21:49:05 +0000

Retail sales rose more than projected in October as Americans snapped up new Apple Inc. (AAPL) iPhones and demand for automobiles improved, giving the worlds largest economy a boost entering the final quarter of 2011.

The 0.5 percent gain followed a 1.1 percent increase for September, Commerce …
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Published: Tue, 15 Nov 2011 22:49

US Data Next Wk/US: Jobs, ISMs, Refunding, Factory Orders, Autos

Forex-Master — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 12:49:02 +0000

The week ahead has a steady flow of economic data releases, but it is the April employment report that will be the focus. Three major central banks will make their respective monetary policy announcements.

Economic Data

Although the data release calendar is fairly busy over the course of the week, not much will distract from employment report for April on Friday at 8:30 ET.

Currently market expectations are for a rise in nonfarm payrolls of about 200,000, in line with the last two months. The unemployment rate is anticipated to be about the same at 8.8%. This would be consistent with an improvement in labor market conditions, although with a long way to go. Still, it would be more Full Forex News

Luxury Carmakers Stabilizing In Europe – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:46:01 +0000

Luxury carmakers appear to be moving ahead of their mid-market counterparts in Europe. Analysts at investment bank JPMorgan say premium car sales in Western Europe are finally finding a bottom.”The share of total luxury car sales in Western Europe continues to improve, month-on-month, to 16.3% in June, versus 16.1% in May 2009 and 15.9% in April 2009,” JPMorgan said in a note to clients, adding that demand for the sector was stabilizing.Earlier this month, Ian Robertson, BMW’s sales and marketing head, said the company was “seeing the first signs of a slight recovery on automobile markets. We will have to wait and see if this trend is sustainable.” But the picture remains grim for the mass market, despite a pick-up in demand thanks to government scrapping schemes across the continent, JPMorgan said. “We expect results this week by PSA, Daimler, Renault and Volkswagen to be mostly positive, with auto profits likely helped by the volume boost from various European scrapping schemes,” the bank forecasts.Scrapping schemes, or the European version of the U.S. “cash for clunkers” program, have been introduced across the continent, slowing losses within the auto sector in France while boosting sales in Germany. .Yet the investment bank warned that the positive effect of these incentives were probably only temporary, and that demand for mid-range vehicles in Europe could start dropping towards the end of 2009. “We continue to expect car sales to moderate towards the end of the year, suggesting 2010 earnings may struggle to show significant year-on-year improvement,” the bank said.
JPMorgan doesn’t expect overall auto production to improve significantly in the fourth quarter of the year, despite estimates by CSM Worldwide, an automotive market forecasting service, that production will rise 3% above the second quarter figure. “Our bias is to think that production in the fourth quarter may not improve significantly versus the second quarter of 2009 given risks of a volume slowdown in Western Europe as the appetite for scrapping schemes moderates, especially in Germany,” JPMorgan wrote.Shares of Daimler
fell 1.1% while shares of BMW
fell 0.2% in Frankfurt on Tuesday. Renault
fell 1%, and shares of PSA Peugeot Citroen
fell 0.3% in Paris.

Ex-Porsche CEO Save The Journalists – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:45:57 +0000

Porsche Chief Executive Wendelin Wiedeking is on his way out to make way for a merger with Volkswagen. But his payoff should soften the blow: The outgoing CEO is getting a check for 71.1 million, despite the obvious failure of his plan to buy out Volkswagen. In fact, it now looks like Volkswagen could end up buying 49% of Porsche instead. So what does a handsomely-rewarded but ultimately failed CEO do when he finds himself in such a situation? He throws money at humble Porsche employees and journalists-the people most likely to be his harshest critics.
Wiedeking has promised to put half of his severance pay into a charitable fund run by Porsche union representatives, intended for “socially fair development” at company sites, and also to give 1 million euros to support associations for “elderly and suffering journalists.” The irony is palpable, given the amount of bad press Wiedeking has received over the past year, as well as Porsche’s attempts to scotch leaked news that Wiedeking was set to leave the company earlier this month.
We reprint Wiedeking’s full statement below.
“Personal reasons but also my responsibility towards society have led to my decision to donate a material amount of money for social purposes. “As a sign of my outstanding relation with longterm members of staff and companions I aim to establish a charitable organisation in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen where the headquarter of Porsche AG is located. With the support of the Porsche union representatives the trust shall be equipped with liquid funds of 25 million euros and supports/aim at ensuring a socially fair development at all Porsche sites.”Furthermore I will donate to the social fund of Landespresse Baden-Württemberg e.V., the trust of Hamburger Presse and the society of the Verein Kollegenhilfe niedersächsischer Journalisten e.V. a lump sum of 500,000 euros each. According to the goals of the organisations outlined in their respective articles of association the donations should serve as a support for elderly and suffering journalists.
“Over and above this I will invest in projects, targeting at creating jobs in Germany. I do pay my taxes in Germany with roughly half of my income being transferred to the state.”The foundation in Zuffenhausen shall complement my two existing charitable trusts in Beckum/Westfalia and Bietigheim-Bissingen, together equipped with a cash donation of 10 million euros.”

Porsche Chief Gets The Boot – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 09:48:55 +0000

Porsche Chief Executive Wendelin Wiedeking headed for the exit on Thursday, holding a tidy 71.2 million payout as the luxury automaker drew closer to a tie-up with sister company Volkswagen. It’s a step in the right direction: His replacement, Michael Macht, as well as his deputy Thomas Edig, will be better positioned to smooth the path for a merger, while Porsche’s proposed 7.1 billion capital increase and a likely investment from Qatar will add to financial stability. But there are still some questions left unanswered, argues Marc-Rene Tonn, an analyst with M.M. Warburg, who thinks buying shares of Porsche now would be a “speculative” move. He says that it’s not clear how dilutive the company’s capital increase will be for existing shareholders, nor what the precise terms of Qatar’s proposed investment will be. The even bigger question is whether Porsche
will hand over its pile of options in Volkswagen, free of charge to Qatar, which would give the emirate an indirect stake of 20% in the automaker and a crucial role in possibly uniting the two.Shares of Porsche fell 0.6%, or 31 euro cents , to 51.20 euros , in Frankfurt, reacting mainly to news of the capital increase. Volkswagen sank 1.7%, to 247.60 euros .The departure of Wiedeking effectively marks the end of his “master plan” to take over Volkswagen
, which has taken some pretty dismal turns over the past year. Porsche’s stealthy purchase of a 31.5% indirect stake in Volkswagen was too smart for its own good, leading to a short squeeze on Volkswagen shares when it was revealed back in October. Although Porsche did sell off some of this stake to help calm Volkswagen’s share price, and took its direct ownership in the automaker to just over 50%, from 42.6%, it simply did not have the funds needed to close its sizeable option positions.Now the opposite is likely: Porsche could end up selling 49% of itself to Volkswagen, even if in the end both companies are united under the Porsche brand. This would also mark a final triumph for Volkswagen Chairman Ferdinand Piech, the co-owner of Porsche, who according to reports has been trying to oust Wiedeking from his CEO position for at least a year.It might also bring a smile to the state of Lower Saxony, a 20% shareholder of Volkswagen, which has long been hostile to a takeover of the automaker. Thanks to a curious German law known as the “Volkswagen law,” it is exceptionally allowed a blocking minority in voting rights, and this has helped it thwart Porsche’s ambitions so far.

Volvo Not As Bad As It Seems – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 11:46:17 +0000

Swedish truck maker Volvo has been stuck in the mud recently: sales have dropped almost 60%, order intakes have fallen 50% year-on-year and it swung to an operating loss on Tuesday thanks to the sharp deterioration in consumer demand. But some are still positive on the stock.Analysts at Nomura said Wednesday that although Volvo’s recent results were likely to trigger consensus downgrades, its business would pick up in the long-term. “We estimate that both earnings and cash dynamics will turn more favorable thanks to a sequential improvement in production and realization of cost-cutting payback,” Nomura wrote in a note to investors, adding that it was keeping its “buy” recommendation on the stock. Nomura also said that Volvo’s liquidity position has been enhanced thanks to undrawn credit lines. “We maintain that Volvo’s geographical sales mix offers greatest exposure to those regions where demand should pick up first. Earnings momentum in 2010 and 2011 is likely to be the strongest in the peer group,” Nomura said.On Tuesday, the world’s second-largest maker of trucks said it saw signs of demand stabilizing but it stuck to its previous forecast that the market for heavy trucks would drop by 30-40% in its North American market, and by at least 50% in Europe. Not everyone is positive on the stock though. On Wednesday, J.P. Morgan forecasts a “significant loss” for Volvo in the third quarter, with only limited savings coming through. The bank said in a note to investors that Volvo would see more “pressure on cash flow” as its net debt increased to 65%.Volvo’s cash flow is still a negative 2.9 billion Swedish kroner in the quarter but significantly narrower than a negative 15.7 billion Swedish kroner in the first quarter.
Separately, Citi Group forecast no real let-up in sight for the truck maker. Citi’s analyst John Lawson said Volvo was still at risk of becoming “a serial disappointer” if the truck markets took longer to recover.And a note by Exane BNP Paribas warned of credit losses and inventory write-offs, but agreed with Nomura that Volvo’s exposure to the North American market and the BRIC countries would drive through its recovery as those regions are expecting to recover first from the recession.Shares of Volvo
, which have climbed 26% so far this year, fell 3.4%, to 50.50 Swedish kroner on Wednesday morning.

TomTom Back On Track – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:46:17 +0000

Dutch navigation device specialist TomTom has had a tough time over the past 12 months, thanks to its hefty debt pile from acquiring Tele Atlas in 2007 and a depressed consumer environment. The company’s stock is still down 90% from its peak in late 2007. But a set of strong second-quarter results boosted hopes of a turnaround on Wednesday, as promising new products and a successful rights issue also worked their magic.TomTom said Wednesday that it had swung back to a profit of 30 million for the second quarter, after a tough first quarter that saw it report a loss of 43 million. This was partly thanks to job cuts and cost control, but also because TomTom managed to ship 73% more navigation devices than in the first quarter and at a higher price on average of 112 euros . Unlike in the first quarter, when retailers were in de-stocking mode and prices were sliding, TomTom enjoyed a more optimistic environment and appetite for new products. Shares of TomTom
jumped 7.8%, or 48 euro cents , to 6.77 euros , during morning trading in Amsterdam. On a year-over-year basis, earnings were still down 43%, and sales down 24%. The share price has lost 62% over the year. But over the past three months, in tandem with wider investor optimism across global stock markets, the stock has gained 46%.”The numbers were better than expected,” said Eric de Graaf, an analyst with Petercam. “But most importantly, it looks like the emphasis has shifted from financial problems back towards operations.” He upgraded his recommendation on the stock Wednesday, to “buy,” from “add.”TomTom’s finances, weakened by its purchase of Tele Atlas, have kept the stock under pressure since the subprime crisis left credit markets gridlocked in late 2007. But TomTom successfully raised 400 million euros from shareholders on June 14, and said on Wednesday this would bring its net debt level down to 672 million euros , from 1 billion euros . The company is also generating more cash, with cash flow from operations at 98 million euros for the second quarter, almost double last year’s levels.So what’s next for the device manufacturer? Early reactions to its new units fitted in cars made by Renault
have been “encouraging,” says TomTom, and a forthcoming application for the Apple
iPhone should help as well.

Volvo Holds Out For Stability – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 16:45:55 +0000

Volvo is still in trouble. The world’s second-largest maker of trucks skidded on Tuesday to a wider-than-expected operating loss, as sales fell almost 60% in Europe.”The second quarter of 2009 remained difficult in terms of earnings in the wake of the exceptionally rapid decline in demand that followed the crisis in the financial system,” said Volvo Chief Executive Leif Johansson. The company said it saw signs of demand stabilizing but it stuck to its previous forecast that the market for heavy trucks would drop by 30-40% in its North American market and by at least 50% in Europe. “Volvo is saying that the rate of decline is holding at more or less the same levels. That doesn’t mean that demand is growing and everybody is happy,” said Johan Trocme, an analyst with Nordea Markets in Stockholm. “Demand continues to collapse but there won’t be a freefall.”
There is as yet very little indication about when Volvo might see an improvement in demand for its trucks and its smaller construction business. Volvo posted a 32% increase in order intakes in the second quarter compared to the first three months of the year, despite being down 51% from a year earlier.It’s not all bad news for investors: underlying earnings were better than expected and were not negatively impacted by one-off charges, which were bigger than anticipated, according to Trocme. Volvo was particularly hurt by costs linked with an agreement on retiree health benefits with its union. Volvo, which manufactures heavy-duty trucks under the Renault, Mack, Nissan Diesel and Eicher brands, as well as its own name, swung to an operating loss of 6.9 billion Swedish kroner , down from a 7.2 billion Swedish kroner profit a year ago. Analysts in a Reuters poll expected the operating loss to come in below the 4.7 billion Swedish kroner mark.
But Johansson said that the company, which is no longer related to the carmaker of the same name after it was acquired by Ford in 1999, “was successful in reducing inventories, which contributed to a positive development in working capital.”Volvo’s cash flow is still a negative 2.9 billion Swedish kroner in the quarter but significantly narrower than a negative 15.7 billion Swedish kroner in the first quarter. Volvo has managed to keep cash tight by aggressively reducing inventories. The company said it cut inventories by 5.8 billion Swedish kroner in the second quarter. To deal with the slump, Volvo has also cut around 21,000 jobs since the start of the year.
Shares of Volvo
, which have climbed 26% so far this year, fell 0.5%, to 52.75 Swedish kroner on Tuesday afternoon.Truck maker Scania, Volvo’s domestic rival, is due to post second-quarter results later this week and Germany’s Daimler
and MAN are reporting later this month.
Thomson Reuters contributed to this article.

Renault Vive La Cash- US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:46:07 +0000

Renault’s efforts to keep a tight rein on its cash seem to be paying off. The French carmaker said Friday that car sales fell 13.7% in the first half of the year, but it had also achieved “significantly positive free cash flow.” Other European carmakers like Volkswagen and BMW are expected to end the year with positive free cash flow, but on this front Renault is surpassing its main French rival, PSA Peaugeot Citroen, which is expected to end the year in negative territory.Shares of Renault
rose 1.3%, or 34 euro cents , to 25.92 euros during early morning trading. Analysts believe Renault’s business is likely to improve in the second half of the year. “The news on the cash flow shows Renault is keeping things tight on what it can control, despite a very negative operating performance,” said George Dieng, an analyst at Natixis Securities in Paris. “It has achieved that by sharply cutting capital expenditure and reducing inventories.”Last March, Renault’s chief operating officer, Patrick Pelata, told Forbes hewould “do everything” to keep cash flowing and avoid going back to the French government for another credit line. Renault is due to report net profit figures on July 30, but Dieng said that, based on the latest sales numbers, he expected the company to perform better in the second half, thanks partly to the incentives put in place by the French government to encourage drivers to get rid of old cars.
Renault said its global market share totaled 3.7%, but it lost 0.5% market share in France following a fall in short-term leasing sales in the first half of the year. The firm also lost market share in Italy by 0.5% and in the U.K. by 2.2%, following the decision to scale down sales after a slide in the value of the pound.Renault brand sales dropped 21.5% in the first six months, with car sales 19.1% lower and light commercial vehicles posting a 33.2% drop, the company said.
Thomson Reuters contributed to this article.

Porsche VW Seen Close To Deal – US-FOREX.US

Forex-Publisher — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:46:05 +0000

It looks like the auto industry’s biggest soap opera is almost over. German carmaker Volkswagen is on the verge of buying half of Porsche’s car-making business, according to German press reports, while the sheikh of Qatar is buying a stake in Porsche and options that control 20% of Volkswagen shares, from Porsche. This could put an end to months of bitter wrangling to reach an agreement over a tie-up involving the smaller sports car maker, which already owns a more than half of VW. The news comes a day after Porsche’s chief executive, Wendelin Wiedeking, delivered a speech to employees about the next steps in the company’s future. Porsche denied rumors that Wiedeking was leaving the company.Shares of Volkswagen fell 1.8% to 57.00 euros on Thursday morning in Frankfurt, while shares of Porsche rose 2.6%, to 51.63 euros Talks between the two carmakers have stalled several times in the last few months thanks to complicated family issues-the companies are chaired by two cousins-and two very different balance sheets. While Volkswagen
is cash rich, Porsche
has debts of around 10 billion euros , built up as part of its attempt to gradually take over its mass-market rival by buying stock options. Porsche has struggled financially. Its been unable to sell its options on the market lest it watch Volkswagen’s share value spiral downwards, while refinancing its debts by the skin of its teeth. Having abandoned plans to take over Volkswagen, Porsche’s chairman and co-owner, Ferdinand Piech, earlier this year started pushing for Volkswagen to buy Porsche’s sports car business and add a 10th brand to its lineup. The latest reports suggest Piech may well have got what he wanted.
The sticking point in talks has been over what sort of role Piech will play in the combined company, relative to his cousin and Porsche chairman Wolfgang Porsche. The carmakers’ supervisory boards are due to meet separately in Porsche’s home town of Stuttgart on July 23. Far from being the end of the soap opera, this could just be the beginning.