By James Langton
(November 15 – 09:00 EST) – Trading is likely to be rather subdued as traders hedge their bets ahead of a potential interest rate move. Markets are mellow in Europe too. They were mixed in Asia.
U.S. Federal Reserve Board chair Alan Greenspan is speaking to the American Counsel of Life Insurance on Banking Revision at 09:30 ET. The speech that will have Fed watchers on the edge of their seats.
The only shred of economic data out today in the U.S. was September’s business inventories, which came in on target up 0.4%. Strong retail consumer demand and Y2K stockpiling were believed to be behind the boost.
Meanwhile, at Statistics Canada, September motor vehicle sales were reported up 2% month- over-month. The huge increase was attributed to trucks for the most part. Statscan also reported that large firms, those with annual revenues of more than $75 million, experienced a drop in profitability in 1998. It’s the first drop since 1991.
In Europe markets are quiet ahead of the Fed announcement. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 is up just 11 points. The German DAX has added 22 and the French CAC 40 is up a mere two points. The big news in European business is that Mannesmann AG has rejected Vodafone AirTouch’s US$106.4 billion takeover bid, saying that it’s too low Vodafone is apparently now contemplating a hostile offer.
Also European commodities traders have pushed crude oil prices to US$25 a barrel, almost a three-year high, on speculation that OPEC production cuts will be extended and maintained.
Over in Asia, markets were mixed. Japan saw a tech rally fade away toward the close; it finished down 60 points. Meanwhile the Hang Seng index had quite a day, closing up more than 250 points. Optimism grew overnight after a deal between the U.S. and China set the stage for the Chinese to enter the WTO.
In other business news Onex Corp. reported third quarter earnings of 29¢ per share, down from 96¢ in the period a year ago.