Chinese, Russian FMs discuss Syria crisis

 Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, had a comprehensive and in-depth exchange of views on the Syria crisis via phone on Tuesday, said the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Wang said China welcomes the Russia-U.S. deal on Syria, hoping that the accord could be implemented as soon as possible.

The Chinese side holds the belief that a military approach cannot solve the conflict, Wang said, adding that China will continue to contribute to facilitating a political solution to the crisis and make due efforts.

Lavrov appreciated China's stand. Both sides agreed to keep close contacts and coordination on the issue.

Source: Xinhua

There is considerable room for improvement in investment between EU and China:European Union Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht

European Union Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht on Tuesday said while the EU-China investment relationship needed further strengthening, it "remains a fundamental source of mutual benefit."

"We need to work together to build an economic relationship that is more than the sum of its parts. A relationship that drives growth at home and contributes to growth in the world economy at large," he said.

"As two of largest players in that economy that is not only in our interest, it is our responsibility," De Gucht added.

He noted there was considerable room for improvement in investment between EU and China, citing that Europe's investment in China added up to less than roughly 2 percent -- 4 percent if Hong Kong is included -- of its total investments abroad.

"In comparison, 30 percent of our stocks are in the United States. China's investments in Europe, while growing, still account for less than 1 per cent of total foreign direct investment here. In comparison, 20 percent is American." De Gucht said.

Source: Xinhua

China's defense minister stresses national defense mobilization

Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan on Tuesday called for a national defense mobilization system that meets the needs of both emergency response and war preparation.

Chang made the remarks at a meeting on national defense mobilization at Lanzhou Military Command in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province.

The defense mobilization system would serve civilians in peaceful times and respond to emergencies and possible wars, said Chang, also a member of the Central Military Commission (CMC) and a general.

The country should make concrete moves towards a defense mobilization system so that it can be well prepared for possible conflicts in the future and new circumstances, he said.

Chinese premier meets World Bank Group president

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim here on Monday and pledged to deepen cooperation with the Washington-based agency, according to a press release issued by the Chinese government on Tuesday.

China is happy to see the World Bank play a bigger role in helping developing countries and reducing poverty, and is ready to work together with the agency to resolve problems regarding global development and to instil sustainable driving forces into the world economy.

Li also briefed Kim on China's reforms and development, stressing the significance of innovation, not only in technology, but also in ideas, systems and mechanisms, said the release.

For his part, Kim said the World Bank admires Chinese government's resolve in pushing reform and appreciates the government's measures taken in this regard.

The World Bank is willing to cooperate with China more closely to endorse the country's economic upgrade, Kim was quoted as saying.

Kim is visiting China from Sunday to Wednesday to discuss expanding collaboration on climate change, one of the most important challenges facing China and the world currently. 

Source: Xinhua

China to promote new-energy vehicles

Subsidies will be provided to help promote new-energy vehicles from 2013 to 2015, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said on Tuesday.

Manufacturers of pure electric automobiles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles will be eligible for the subsidies, a ministry notice said.

Government organizations, public institutions and public transportation will be key targets for the new policy, the notice said.

The subsidy standards will be rated following basic price differences between new-energy automobiles and their traditional counterparts, but will decrease each year due to scale of production and technological progress.

Central financial authorities will also reward pilot cities with subsidies in proportion to their investment in building charging equipment.

The key target regions will be mega-cities or city clusters, as they are under heavy pressure to save energy and cut emissions, for example the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster, the Yangtze River Delta area and the Pearl River Delta region.

Source: Xinhua

China urges Japan to learn from histroy, stick to peaceful path

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei on Tuesday urged Japan to learn from history and adhere to peaceful development path. Wednesday is the 82nd anniversary of the "September 18 Incident," which marks the beginning of Japan's invasion of China. Hong told a routine press briefing that the Japanese militarists' invasion of its Asian neighbors brought disaster to these countries and peoples. He urged the Japanese to learn from history and adhere to the path of peaceful development with a responsible spirit as well as to abide by its statements on the invasion issue. Japan should take concrete action to win the trust of the international community and neighboring countries, according to the spokesman. For historical reasons, Asian neighbors are extremely concerned about Japan's development in terms of politics and security, Hong said, urging Japan to respect the concerns of countries in the region. Japan should do more to contribute to regional peace and stability, stop creating or playing up tensions and making excuses for boosting military capacity or adjusting military policies, he added. China has the ability and determination to safeguard its territorial sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands, the spokesman stressed.

Hacker group in China linked to big cyber attacks: Symantec

 Researchers have discovered a group of highly sophisticated hackers operating for hire out of China, a U.S. computer security company said on Tuesday.
Symantec Corp. said the group, which it dubbed "Hidden Lynx," was among the most technically advanced of several dozen believed to be running cyber espionage operations out of China. Unlike a previous report by another company, Symantec did not accuse the Chinese government of involvement in the cyber attacks.
Symantec's 28-page report described Hidden Lynx as a "professional organization" staffed by between 50 and 100 people with a variety of skills needed to breach networks and steal information, including valuable corporate secrets.
In Operation Aurora, hackers attacked Google Inc, Adobe Systems Inc and dozens of other companies. Google in January 2010 disclosed the attacks, in which hackers tried to read Gmail communications of human rights activists and to access and change source code at targeted companies.

Source: Reuters

UK, banks fall as Government starts Lloyds sell-down

Banking stocks were among the worst performers in London on Tuesday with Lloyds sinking after the government began to sell-off its stake in the lender five years after its state bailout back in 2008.

The UK Financial Investments, the company that manages the government's investments in Lloyds and fellow state-backed lender RBS, placed a 6% stake in Lloyds this morning, selling shares to institutional investors at a 3.1% discount to yesterday's closing price.

The sale of 4.3bn shares at a price of 75p each, which raised around £3.2bn for the Treasury, reduced its shareholding from about 38.7% to approximately 32.7%. 

"The simple manner in which the shares were placed will no doubt be welcomed by investors," said analysts at Jefferies. 

"We can only hope that the rest of the government's stake in Lloyds and RBS is disposed of in such an effective manner."

Source: Livecharts

SEPTEMBER EUROZONE ZEW ECONOMIC EXPECTATIONS INCREASE 'CONSIDERABLY'

Economic expectations for the Eurozone increased 'considerably' in September, according to the ZEW indicator published on Tuesday.

Institutional investor sentiment measured a sharp increase in optimism that beat expectations in both Germany and the euro area.

With regard to the Eurozone's number one economy, the ZEW indicator of economic sentiment jumped 7.6 points in September to 49.6, beating the consensus estimate of 46. 

"The financial market experts hold the view that the German economy is still gaining momentum," ZEW President Clemens Fuest explained. 

"In particular, the experts' economic optimism has increased due to the improved economic outlook for the Eurozone - although recently released economic data for Germany have fallen short of expectations," Fuest added.

The assessment of the current economic situation for Germany also improved in September. The respective indicator increased by 12.3 points to stand at the 30.6 points-mark.

The ZEW also noted that economic expectations for the Eurozone "increased considerably in September". The respective indicator improved by 14.6 points to 58.6 points, beating the consensus forecast for a rise to just 47.2.

The indicator for the current economic situation in the euro area increased by 14.4 to a level of minus 59.7 points.

Source:LiveCharts

Downturn throughout the European Union in New car registrations

"Despite a downturn throughout the European Union in new car registrations, the UK managed to escape the drop and post solid growth in August, according to data published on Tuesday by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association. 

After a 5.0% increase in July, new passenger car registrations fell by 5.0% in August to 653,827 during the month.

The drop was led by an 18.3% drop in Spain, a 10.5% fall in France, a 6.6% decline in Italy and a 5.5% contraction in Germany. 

However, bucking the general trend the UK produced good news with a 10.9% expansion.

From January to August, most major markets faced a downturn ranging from -3.6% in Spain to -6.6% in Germany, -9.0% in Italy and -9.8% in France. Only the UK performed better in the first eight months of the year with a 10.44% increase on-the-year. 

Overall, new registrations for the region fell by 5.2% year-on-year. The total ended at 7,841,596 units, the lowest level ever recorded for the January to August period since the series began in 1990".

Source:LiveCharts

Chinese Internet Co. Tencent Holdings Market Value Tops US$ 100 billion

According to an article published today in the Wall Street Journal:

"Many people outside China may have never heard of Tencent Holdings  Ltd. but the Chinese Internet giant is now worth almost as much as Facebook Inc.

The market value of Hong Kong-listed Tencent, which operates the popular WeChat smartphone messaging app and various other online services in China, just topped US$100 billion this week, coming close to Facebook's market capitalization of about US$103.5 billion.

WeChat, ubiquitous among Chinese smartphone users, has 236 million active users, according to Tencent. Many analysts and investors expect Tencent to cash in on WeChat’s growing user base by offering various additional services such as gaming, e-commerce and advertising.

Among China’s major Internet companies, Tencent is in the best position to benefit from the Web’s migration to mobile devices from personal computers, said Jefferies analyst Cynthia Meng".

Avec son dernier smartphone, LG suit les traces de Samsung

"Fort de ses récents succès, LG Electronics s'apprête à lancer en grande pompe le G2, son dernier smartphone haut de gamme équipé du système Android deGoogle. Ce modèle, disponible depuis le 16 septembre en pré-commande, est la réponse directe du groupe sud-coréen au Galaxy S4, le produit phare de son compatriote Samsung.

Comme Samsung, il tente aussi de se démarquer de la concurrence en proposant des fonctionnalités maison, censéesenrichir l'expérience utilisateur. Avec ses formes incurvées et sa coque en plastique, le smartphone présente en outre des allures similaires au Galaxy S4.

Le lancement du G2 coïncide avec une période faste pour LG, devenu en début d'année le troisième acteur du marché des smartphones derrière Samsung etApple. Au deuxième trimestre, le groupe a écoulé 12,1 millions d'appareils, un chiffre record. C'est aussi deux fois plus que l'année précédente. Selon le cabinet IDC, sa part de marché s'élève désormais à 5,1 %, contre 3,7 % l'an passé

"La décision de LG de se focaliser davantage sur le segment haut de gamme est une clé importante de son succès"

La croissance de ses ventes ne repose ainsi pas sur des modèles à bas prix, comme c'est le cas pour les fabricants chinois Lenovo, ZTE et Huawei, qui se sont accaparé 13 % du marché mondial.L'activité mobile de LG est en outre rentable, là où HTC, Nokia ou encore Motorola accumulent les pertes.

"Nous pensons être en mesure d'atteindre une part de marché de 10 %", assure Ken Hong, son directeur de la communication. Le fabricant va aussi bientôt se lancer sur le segment des tablettes".

Source: Le Monde

US Real Earnings August

Real average hourly earnings for all employees rose 0.1 percent from July to August,     seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This increase   stems from a 0.2 percent increase in average hourly earnings being partially offset by a 0.1 percent increase in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). 

Real average weekly earnings rose 0.4 percent over the month due to the increase in real average hourly earnings and a 0.3 percent increase in the average workweek.  

Real average hourly earnings rose 0.7 percent, seasonally adjusted, from August 2012 to  August 2013.
The increase in real average hourly earnings, combined with a 0.3 percent increase in the
average workweek, resulted in a 1.0 percent increase in real average weekly earnings over this period.

US CPI Increased 0.1% in August

  The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.1
 percent in August on a seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Bureau of
 Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all
 items index increased 1.5 percent before seasonal adjustment.

 Increases in the indexes for shelter and medical care contributed to
 the increase in the seasonally adjusted all items index; they also
 accounted for most of the 0.1 percent increase in the index for all
 items less food and energy. Within all items less food and energy, the
 indexes for personal care, tobacco, and apparel rose as well, while
 the indexes for airline fares, household furnishings and operations,
 and used cars and trucks declined.

 The food index rose slightly in August, with the fruits and vegetable
 index rising 1.2 percent and four of the six major grocery store group
 indexes increasing. The energy index declined 0.3 percent, due mostly
 to a sharp decline in the index for natural gas. The gasoline and
 electricity indexes also declined slightly, while the index for fuel
 oil rose.

 The all items index increased 1.5 percent over the last 12 months. The
 index for all items less food and energy has risen 1.8 percent over
 the last year; the 12-month change has remained in the range of 1.6
 percent to 2.3 percent since June of 2011. The food index rose 1.4
 percent over the last 12 months, a figure that has held steady since
 May. The energy index declined 0.1 percent over the last 12 months.

Amazon e lo smartphone: non ora, non gratis

 No, Amazon non lancerà il suo smartphone quest'anno. E quando, e se lo farà, non si tratterà di un dispositivo gratuito. La società di Seattle ha smentito le voci diffuse dal portale dell'ex giornalista del Wall Street JournalJessica Lessin, secondo le quali la strategia per entrare nel mercato dei telefoni cellulari intelligenti sarebbe stata quella della gratuità a fronte di eventuali abbonamenti obbligatori ai servizi del marchio. 

Corriere della Sera

China's August FDI growth slows

China attracted 8.38 billion U.S. dollars in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in August, up 0.62 percent year on year, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed Tuesday.

The increase was sharply down from a 24.13 percent jump in July and a 20.12 percent growth in June.

In the first eight months, the country's FDI inflow totaled 79.77 billion U.S. dollars, up 6.37 percent from the same period last year, the ministry said at a press conference.

Precious Metals Prices 16.09.13 11.01 pm. Eastern Time

Gold Price Futures    3 months     US$  1,314.18

Silver Price Futures  3 months     US$       21.87

No Flight of Fancy, the Jetpack Is Coming

According to an article published today in the Wall Street Journal:

"Jetpacks have long captured the public imagination as a way to dodge traffic jams and Cold War villains.

Among the world's aviation regulators, they have been dismissed as a flight of fancy that didn't require any special rules.

But a planned launch of a jetpack in New Zealand next year has bureaucrats scratching their heads, particularly as the machine's makers say the thing can travel up to 7,000 feet in the air at speeds of 50 miles an hour.

"Think of it like a motorcycle in the sky," says Peter Coker, chief executive of Martin Aircraft Co. Ltd., which has spent 30 years developing the Martin Jetpack here. The Martin jetpack is unique in that it is not rocket powered but has a gasoline engine driving twin-ducted fans. The latest P12 prototype, a far sleeker and shinier model than the earlier versions, will allow a pilot to fly for up to half an hour.

New Zealand is taking the prospect of jetpacks in its airspace seriously, even though the product's price—more than $150,000—means that just a few dozen have been reserved. Most of those are going to overseas customers".

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Yellen Is Now Top Fed Hopeful

According to an article published today in the Wall Street Journal:
"Federal Reserve Vice Chairwoman Janet Yellen emerged as the front-runner to become the White House's nominee to lead the central bank, a day after Lawrence Summers pulled out of the contest amid congressional resistance, according to people familiar with the matter.
 An announcement won't happen this week, officials said. White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday that Mr. Obama is still on track to name his Fed nominee this fall, which he noted technically begins next week.
The search for a successor to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has become a messy public contest over the past few months after some lawmakers challenged Mr. Summers and spoke out in favor of Ms. Yellen. Mr. Obama had mentioned them both in July as candidates, along with former Fed Vice Chairman Donald Kohn".

Japan finance minister - hard to cut corporate tax while raising sales tax

Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso reiterated on Tuesday his cautious view on a possible corporate tax cut to cushion the blow from a planned sales tax hike as the government prepares to draw up an economic package by the end of this month.

Aso made no mention of the size of the package, while repeating that the government should not resort to extra borrowing if it were to compile an extra budget for the current fiscal year to next March, given the need for fiscal reform.

"Realistically speaking, it would be difficult to lower the corporate tax while raising the sales tax," Aso told reporters after a cabinet meeting".

Source: Reuters

China's largest Internet companies are investing in companies that can give them competitive access to the smartphone market

 According to an article published today in the Wall Street Journal:
"Tencent Holdings Limited,invested $448 million for a minority share in Chinese search engine Sogou, the latest example of how China's largest Internet companies are spending sizable amounts to expand their product arsenals.The deal marks the end of months of talks between Sohu.com Inc and potential suitors for its Sogou search unit.
Tencent's investment, which gives it a 36.5% stake in Sogou, is also in part designed to keep rivals such as Baidu Inc. and Qiho360 Technology Co. from getting their hands on China's third-largest search engine by traffic, according to research firm CNZZ.

At the same time, it allows Sohu to retain control over Sogou while also getting a new source of traffic for its search engine from Tencent's popular QQ and WeChat messaging services. "What Sogou needs is not cash, it's traffic, access…I think this will do it," Sohu Chairman Charles Zhang said Monday.

China's largest Internet companies are rushing to acquire or invest in any companies that can give them a competitive edge in attracting China's growing number of smartphone users. Battle lines are being drawn among China's three largest Internet companies: social-media and games provider Tencent, e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and search giant Baidu, respectively. The latest move firmly aligns Sohu with Tencent".

Japan faces record-long trade deficit, little sign can reverse trend

Japan is on course for its longest run of trade deficits, effectively marking the end of the nation's decades-long reliance on exports from the likes of electronics giant Sony and automaker Toyota as a driver of growth and income.

Trade figures due on Thursday are likely to show that Japan produced its 14th consecutive deficit in August, matching a 1979-1980 record run during the global oil shock. Economists say the deficits will continue.

When Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's reflationary policies weakened the yen after he took power last December, many economists had anticipated a so-called J-curve effect, where a spike in import costs would over time be more than offset by gains in exports.

But a closer look at trade statistics shows that the currency's 15 percent decline since the beginning of this year has failed to produce the export turnaround needed to bring the trade balance back into the black and there is little indication it will do so in the future, posing new policy challenges.

"I cannot tell when the trade deficit will end," said Norio Miyagawa, a senior economist at Mizuho Securities Research & Consulting Co. "What's worrying more is that Japan's export competitiveness may be waning."

With trade acting as a drag rather than an engine of growth, there is more pressure on Abe to reform the domestic economy. But so far, the structural reform part of the prime minister's "Abenomics" policy agenda has disappointed, unlike his radical monetary easing and fiscal stimulus, which have buoyed the stock market and business mood.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Il faudra 6 ans à la Grèce pour revenir à son niveau d'avant-crise

"Pour la majorité des experts, il ne faut pas des décennies ni de nombreuses générations, mais seulement six ans" pour que la Grèce retrouve le niveau de vie dont elle jouissait avant la crise de la dette de 2010, a estimé lundi 16 septembre à Athènes le premier ministre, Antonis Samaras. "Nous ne sommes pas encore sortis de l'ornière. Il y a encore des problèmes qu'il faut résoudre", a-t-il ajouté au cours d'une conférence sur la démocratie organisée par le quotidien International Herald Tribune.

Rappelant qu'il y avait eu de "sérieuses erreurs dans le premier programme" (2010-2012), le responsable a néanmoins souligné que la Grèce avait actuellement besoin de "mesures" pour renouer avec la croissance car les politiques d'austérité ne contribuent pas à l'assainissement de l'économie, qui s'est contractée de 25 % ces six dernières années.

Antonis Samaras doit se rendre mardi à Bruxelles pour s'entretenir avec les dirigeants de l'Union européenne, Herman Van Rompuy et José Manuel Barroso, ainsi qu'avec le commissaire à la concurrence, Joaquin Almunia. La Grèce, qui doit assurer au premier semestre 2014 la présidence semestrielle de l'Union européenne, aspire à une nouvelle aide de ses partenaires afin de réduire sa dette publique et  faire face à ses besoins financiers pour 2014 et 2015, évalués à 11 milliards d'euros"

Le Monde

Precious Metals Prices 2.36 pm. Eastern Time

Gold Price Futures        3 months   US$  1,310.02

Silver Price  Futures     3 months   US$       21.75

Japan Display. Apple Supplier Plans $2 Billion IPO

"You may not have heard of Japan Display Inc., but the Tokyo-based company is a supplier of displays used in Apple Inc.’s iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C.

People familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal Friday the Japanese company is planning to go public,aiming to raise $2 billion. The IPO is expected to occur by March on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and value it at about $7 billion.

Japan Display, which began operations in 2012, was created out of a three-way merger among the display operations of major Japanese electronics makers – Sony Corp., Toshiba Corp. and Hitachi Ltd. Its current owner is Innovation Network Corp. of Japan, a government-backed investment fund, which invested about 70% in Japan Display when the merger took place. Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi hold a little less than 10% each". 

Source:WSJ