Dollar down after 10-week rally!

Euro gains capped

The dollar slipped in Asia Tuesday following a 10-week rally, while gains in the euro were capped by concerns about slackening European economic growth.

The greenback bought 108.74 yen in Singapore afternoon trade against 108.94 yen in New York late Monday. The euro rose to $1.2851 from $1.2850, while slipping to 139.72 yen from 139.78 yen.
Japanese financial markets are closed for a public holiday.

The dollar's upward momentum has taken a breather after last week hitting highs above 109 yen not seen since August 2008.

The gains came after the the Federal Reserve hinted that interest rates could rise further than expected when they are eventually hiked, probably in mid-2015.

Singapore's United Overseas Bank said the dollar was facing some selling in Asian trade after a "surprisingly weak set of US housing data" released on Monday.

The National Association of Realtors said existing-home sales in the US fell 1.8 percent in August, following four straight months of gains.

The euro saw an uptick in Asia after hitting 14-month lows a day earlier as traders digested a speech by European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi to the European Parliament.

Draghi dismissed market disappointment about demand from banks for a new lending programme launched last week, saying it was on track to pump more liquidity into the financial system but needed time to take full effect.

He noted that the eurozone recovery was sputtering but said the central bank would keep its accommodative monetary policy in place for some time.

The dollar rose against most Asia-Pacific currencies.

It climbed to Sg$1.2672 from Sg$1.2655 in Tokyo on Monday, to 11,978 Indonesian rupiah from 11,961 rupiah, to 60.89 Indian rupees from 60.77 rupees, and to 44.57 Philippine pesos from 44.42 pesos.

It rose to Tw$30.23 from Tw$30.19 while easing to 1,040.64 South Korean won from 1,040.75 won.

The Australian dollar stood at 89.08 US cents from 89.36 cents, while the Chinese yuan bought 17.71 yen from 17.70 yen.

Source: yahoo.com

Rumors that Circulates at Wall Street

Siemens to Acquire Dresser Rand for $83/Share

The Deal:

Dresser-Rand Group Inc. (NYSE: DRC) announced Sunday, that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Siemens under which Siemens will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Dresser-Rand common stock for $83.00 per share in cash, in transaction valued at approximately $7.6 billion.

The deal is expected to close in the summer of 2015, subject to Dresser-Rand shareholder approval, as well sas regulatory approval in the U.S., Europe and certain other jurisdictions.

Sulzer (OTC: SULZF) confirmed Monday they had terminated discussions with Dresser-Rand and were pursuing other M&A projects. General Electric (NYSE: GE), which was rumored by Financial Times on Friday to be preparing a bid for Dresser-Rand, was not heard from on Monday.

Dresser-Rand shares closed Monday at $81.97, a gain of 2.5%.

Report Silver Lake in Talks to Acquire Shutterfly for $50+/Share

The Rumor:

Shares of Shutterfly (NASDAQ: SFLY) surged higher Monday, following a report from Reuters that private equity firm Silver Lake was in talks to acquire the photo sharing company for more than $50.00 per share.

Spokespersons for Shutterfly and Silver Lake did not respond to requests for comment.

Shutterfly shares closed Monday at $50.12, a gain of more than 5%.

Merck KGaA to Acquire Sigma-Aldrich for $140/Share in Cash

The Deal:

Merck KGaA (OTC: MKGAY) and Sigma-Aldrich (NASDAQ: SIAL) announced Monday, that Merck KGaA will acquire Sigma-Aldrich for $17.0 billion or $140 per share in cash. The deal is expected to close in mid-year 2015, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

Sigma-Aldrich closed Monday at $136.40, a gain of 33%.

EMC Reportedly Held Merger Talks with Hewlett-Packard

The Rumor:

EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC), reportedly held talks with Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ), according to a report from WSJ. The discussions are said to have taken place over a period of almost a year, and according to sources, the talks have recently ended. It is not known if the talks can be revived.

Other companies seen as potential suitors for all or part of EMC, include Dell, Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) and Oracle (NASDAQ: MSFT). Shareholder Elliott Management has been urging EMC to consider a breakup, including a sale of its 80% VMware stake, to unlock shareholder value.

EMC closed Monday at $29.68, a gain of $0.15, on three times average volume. Shares of VMware (NYSE: VMW) rose 2% Monday, to close at $96.16.

Report Allergan Rejected Bid from Actavis; Allergan in Talks to Acquire Salix

The Rumor:

Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN) recently rejected a takeover bid from Actavis plc (NYSE: ACT), according to a report from WSJ. Actavis is said to still be interested in a deal for Allergan.

Sources say Allergan is in talks to acquire Salix Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (NASDAQ: SLXP) in an all-cash deal worth more than $10 billion. Salix has already agreed to a merger with Cosmo Pharmaceuticals.

Allergan has been fighting off a hostile takeover by Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (NYSE: VRX), led by investor Bill Ackman.

Allergan closed Monday at $166.12, a loss of more than 1%, and traded up 1.5% after-hours. Actavis closed Monday at $235.62, a loss of 2.5% and gained $1.38 after-hours. Salix Pharmaceuticals lost 2.5% to close at $159.83, but traded at $185.00 after-hours.

Source: benzinga.com

Hong Kong Stocks Rise

Hong Kong stocks rose a second day, with the benchmark index headed for its highest close in six years, as investors weighed earnings reports and amid signs of possible de-escalation in global conflicts.

China Resources Power Holdings Co. led gains after net income rose. Casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. climbed 0.7 percent before posting results today. Cheung Kong Holdings Ltd. added 1.1 percent to pace a gain by developers. Cnooc Ltd. increased 0.9 percent after the oil explorer was upgraded at Credit Suisse Group AG. China Medical System Holdings Ltd. surged to a record after posting a gain in profit.

The Hang Seng Index rose 0.2 percent to 25,010.27 as of 9:52 a.m. in Hong Kong, poised for the highest close since May 22, 2008. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI), also known as the H-share index, added 0.4 percent to 11,112.47. Data yesterday showed U.S. homebuilder sentiment rose in August, as Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and central bankers prepare to meet in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

“Today is driven by geopolitical risks seen as easing and good U.S. economic data ahead of Yellen’s speech at Jackson Hole,” said Stuart Beavis, head of institutional equity derivatives at Vantage Capital in Hong Kong. “I am a hint wary that markets are too calm and that they are too dismissive of the end of or calming of geopolitical risk. It’s definitely not over yet and should still be followed closely.”

The H-share gauge rose 20 percent from this year’s low in March through yesterday amid speculation China will add stimulus to meet its growth goal. The index traded at 7.7 times estimated earnings at the last close, compared with 11.5 for the Hang Seng Index (HSI) and 16.5 on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (SPX) yesterday.

U.S. Futures

Futures on the S&P 500 climbed 0.1 percent today. The U.S. equity benchmark index increased 0.9 percent yesterday, while the Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1 percent to the highest level since 2000. A gauge of confidence in the U.S. housing industry climbed to the highest level in seven months

Israel and Palestinian militants agreed to extend their five-day truce by 24 hours. In Iraq, Kurdish and government forces retook the nation’s largest dam from rebels. The Red Cross is close to working out details of a safe-passage plan for a Russian aid convoy intended for southeastern Ukraine. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin met Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov for more than five hours of talks in Berlin as they sought to ease tensions.

Source: bloomberg.com

ITM Financial Releases New Binary Options Signals Software

For the first time in the binary options trading space, an artificial intelligence binary trading platform has been released!

ITM Financial has released their latest software package, named Proteus Elite, exclusively to clients of the binary brokerage, Binary International. This marks the first time an artificial intelligence program has been applied to binary options trading.

The binary options space has long been overdue for an artificial intelligence, learning system, to be implemented the trading market, said the ITM Financial CEO, Curt Dalton. The amount of information our data scientists and analytics team can put together on binary options and forex trading is astronomical. There are terabytes worth of information to pull trading patterns and recognition out of at a moments' notice for our traders, finished Dalton.

ITM Financial's binary trading software is some of the most successful on the market and also much sought after. ITM Financial inked an exclusive distribution deal with binary options broker Binary International this past year. The deal allows Binary International clients full access to the ITM suite of software products related to forex and binary trading. We think Binary International is a great gateway for out products based on their fast trading speed, great customer service, and strong reputation for fast customer payouts, It gives us a chance to expand our reach with Proteus to all new countries and traders. Binary International is launching their Arabic site this week as well, so we need to be ready for that.

Proteus Elite is a new set of algorithmic software that can learn Binary Options Signals and be aware of them in futures trading set ups. Forex and Binary Trading is in a whole new level with the roll out of Proteus Elite. The binary options space is fast moving and requires a massive amount of machine power to compute the constantly changing scenarios.

Source: globenewswire.com

Gold Declines for Second Days

As Silver drops to two month low, Gold decreased or a second day as the outlook for an improving U.S. economy outweighed tension in Ukraine. Silver fell to a two-month low, while palladium retreated from the highest level in more than 13 years.

Gold for immediate delivery lost as much as 0.6 percent to $1,297.46 an ounce, and traded at $1,299.91 at 11:11 a.m. in Singapore, Bloomberg generic pricing showed. The metal on Aug. 15 dropped to $1,292.63, the lowest level since Aug. 6. Spot palladium climbed to $895.55 an ounce, the highest price since February 2001, before declining.

Bullion rallied 8.2 percent this year, even as the Federal Reserve reduced stimulus, in part on tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East. The Fed, which has kept its benchmark lending rate near zero percent since December 2008, will this week release minutes of its meeting in July, when it cut asset purchases for a sixth time. A report last week showed U.S. industrial output advanced, adding to signs that the recovery is gaining traction.

“Gold prices fell as improving U.S. data dented investor demand despite rising tensions in the Ukraine,” Mark Pervan, the head of commodity research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Melbourne, said in a note today. “Support from geopolitical tensions remains sporadic.”


Data this week may show a rebound in U.S. housing starts, while sales of previously owned homes probably held near an eight-month high in July. Fed Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak Aug. 22 at a central bankers’ conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Source: yahoo.com