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President Bush tries to sell the bailout package to the American public

Thu, Sep 25 2008, 08:28 GMT
by Eben Esterhuizen

TradeTheNews.com

- President Bush used a prime-time TV slot to try and sell the bailout plan to the American public, warning that "our entire economy is in danger". Bush said that the plan "is aimed at preserving America's overall economy," not individual companies or industries. Signaling a possible concession, Mr. Bush said the plan should be "designed to protect taxpayers." Unconfirmed reports suggest that the Democrats have finalized a bailout package, and that it will be discussed with Republicans tomorrow. The Democrats' plan provides for oversight, equity measures and gives bankruptcy judges power on mortgages. Barney Frank told CNBC that there is a "pretty good agreement" on the bailout plan as a result of recent changes, while Senator Dodd said he is not convinced the plan will work.

- Japan's merchandise trade balance in August swings to a deficit for the first time since January: (JP AUG MERCHANDISE TRADE BALANCE: -¥324B V -¥290B expected, ¥85.5B prior; ADJUSTED: -¥113.3B V ¥122.5B expected, ¥172.4B prior) "The reason for the deficit is quite clear," said Japan's Economy Minister Yosano. "The global economic slowdown - particularly in the U.S. - has curbed demand for Japanese exports." Analysts pointed out that energy sources were a large factor for the increase in imports, while exports to the United States plummeted 21.8%, down for a 12th consecutive month. Japan's trade with China saw a surplus of ¥10.8B, while trade with all of Asia resulted in a ¥995.5B - up 18.1% on a y/y basis. Exports to the rest of Asia rose 6.7% during August.

- Japan's corporate service price index shows 25th consecutive month of annual increase: (JP AUG CORPORATE SERVICE PRICE YOY: 1.4% V 1.2% expected, 1.3% prior) On a monthly basis, corporate service prices were down -0.4%.

- Despite current account deficit widening, NZD rallies in Asia: (NZ Q2 ACCOUNT DEFICIT-GDP RATIO: -8. 4% V -7.9% expected, -8.0% prior revised from 7.8%)

- Weaknesses among Australia's leading indicators have become slightly more widespread than the strengths over the past six months, says the Conference Board: (AU JULY CONFERENCE BOARD LEADING INDEX: 0.0% V 0.5% prior, prior revised from - 0.5%) The leading index was unchanged in July, following four consecutive monthly increases. The coincident index increased modestly in July, with strengths among the coincident indicators remaining widespread in recent months.

- Equities: At 0:14 EDT Japan's Nikkei is -1.38%, the S&P/ASX200 is -0.85%, South Korea's KOSPI is -0.40%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is +0.61%, and the Shanghai composite index is +3.94%. The S&P500 futures contract lost -0.01% since the U.S. close, last trading at 1,192.90. Shipping companies, trading houses and automakers generally traded lower in Tokyo, while banks were mixed. The S&P/ASX200 looked heavy throughout the session, dragged down by banks and miners. The Kospi recovered from some early weakness, while Chinese markets rallied on rumors that the government was buying equities to support sentiment. In Hong Kong, Bank of East Asia traded sharply higher after Hong Kong's central bank assured investors of the bank's financial stability.

- Commodities: Nymex crude oil gained +0.10% between 18:00 EDT and 0:14 EDT, last trading at $105.84/bbl. Spot gold lost -0.26%, last trading at $892.70/oz.

Published on  Thu, Sep 25 2008, 08:29 GMT