Moody’s cuts Ireland debt rating
- By Bruce Sands
In another blow to the euro-zone, Moody’s cut the sovereign debt rating of Ireland from Aa1 to Aa2, almost exactly one year after it initially cut the island nation’s rating from the top grade, Aaa.
The Irish National Treasury Management Agency, which is is responsible for the nation’s sovereign debt, put a brave face on things. They pointed out that Moody’s now rates the country’s bonds as “stable” rather “than negative, possibly indicating that Ireland will hold the Aa2 rating for a while.
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Business Week Identifies “Modern Day Gold Rush”
Gold has had winning years since 2001.
- By Superior Gold Group
Bloomberg/BusinessWeek has written a long piece on the economic effects of the gold’s rising price, identifying some of the unique opportunities that arise as gold hovers around $1,200 per ounce. Savvy entrepreneurs, inventors and investors have come up with new ways to make money off of the rising price of one of the world’s most precious commodities.
One path to golden riches, the magazine found, was the most old-fashioned - prospecting for gold in streams and other potentially gold-rich locations. The Gold Prospectors Association of American, based in Temecula, California, says that its membership jumed 93 percent in 2008, with more than 62,000 members around the country.
U.S. trade deficit jumps, spooking economists and traders
Debt hawks will be unhappy with the trade deficit.
- By John March
The U.S. trade deficit climbed by 4.8 percent in May to $42.3 billion, an unexpected rise to the highest level in 18 months. The news signals a number of things, some of them apparently contradictory.
For instance, figures for U.S. growth in the second half of 2010 will now likely trend downwards, as Americans send their earnings abroad.
On the other hand, foreign economies will be glad to see the U.S. picking up its old mantle of consumerism, which many feared had entered a permanently decreasing stage.
Gold prices rise as weak jobs data hits markets
The price of gold rose on Wednesday for the second day in a row. Traders reacted to data from the ADP Employment Report, which suggested that non-farm private employment increased by only 13,000 jobs in June.
This was the fifth gain in as many months, said ADP, but far below the projected level of 60,000 jobs. Figures like this stoke fears of either a jobless recovery or a double-dip recession.
Czech president ponders breakup of euro zone
Czech president ponders breakup of euro zone
The current fiscal debacle in some European Union countries has led to the inevitable speculation over whether the euro currency will exist years from now.
This is because rising deficits across the continent have led to a higher chance that a country could default on its debt obligations, resulting in a wave of financial losses for banks across the continent that hold these bonds.
