Tag - Acn

Small-cap stocks gyrated between positive and negative territory in the first half hour of trading as record-high crude oil prices, safe-haven flow away from stocks and steep declines in global markets overnight countered a decent personal income report. The market was oversold after Thursday’s collapse, and price action could be choppy ahead of the end of the quarter. At 10:03 a.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 1.62, or 0.23%, at 700.04.

The Michigan sentiment survey slipped to 56.4, which was slightly below the forecast of 57, but the number was not enough of a surprise to spark a big move in stocks.

The personal income report headline figure jumped 1.9%, which was well beyond the median forecast for a rise of 0.7%. However, when discounting the impact of the tax stimulus checks, real income was only up 0.4%. The May PCE deflator was up 0.1%, which was better than the forecast for a rise of 0.2%, which sparked a pre-opening bounce off overnight lows in stock index futures.

“Real consumer spending jumped in May, boosted by the tax stimulus checks,” Steven Wood, chief economist with Insight Economics, said in an email. “This will allow consumer spending to rebound and keep Q2 growth positive (albeit weak). After the rebate checks are spent, ongoing job losses will weaken income growth, slow consumer spending and dampen economic growth during the second half of the year. Eventually, weak economic growth will dampen inflation — at least that’s the FOMC’s hope,” Wood said.

Despite the mild upbeat news from personal income data, the market still was on edge about crude oil prices, which climbed to a fresh record high overnight above $142 dollars a barrel. Crude prices backed off toward $140 into the stock market . . .

Small-cap stocks are expected to open steady to lower, with pressure from rising crude oil prices, slumping bank stocks and a sell-off in global equities overnight countered by a better-than-expected personal income report. The Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was down about 0.2% in after-hours trading, which suggests a cash opening near 697.

Crude oil prices climbed to yet another record higher in overnight action, moving above $142 dollars a barrel. Although the market pulled back to around $141 dollars, it’s still unnerving to equities to go into the weekend with record highs in tow.

The personal income report came in at plus 1.9%, which was much better than the forecast for a rise of 0.7%. The May core personal consumption expenditure index was up 0.1%, (slightly below the 0.2% forecast), which sparked a recovery bounce in stock index futures from the overnight lows.

Equity markets around the world tumbled overnight, catching up with the big slide registered in U.S. stock markets Thursday. Japan shares were down 2%, Hong Kong off 1.8%, China down 5.5%, Taiwan down 3.3%, India down 4.3%, Australia down 1.3%, Singapore down 0.8% and South Korea off 2%.

Equities on the move overnight included Accenture (NYSE:ACN), which rallied after reporting strong earnings and raising full-year guidance. Also, Andersons Inc. (Nasdaq:ANDE) shot up some 15% in after-hours trading as the company also raised yearly guidance. Palm Inc. (Nasdaq:PALM) was off 7% overnight as earnings missed the forecast. AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE:AKS) shot up about 3% as . . .

Since the Chinese government relaxed restrictions and allowed foreign financial institutions to enter China's retail banking market in December 2006, a world of opportunities have opened up for banks, both international and domestic.

China's increasingly liberalized financial services sector has attracted investment from global powerhouses such as Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BOA), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC), Royal Bank of Scotland Group (NYSE: RBS) and Standard Chartered PLC (LON: STAN) — some have set up shop under their own banners, while others have purchased stakes in successful Chinese banks.

Stepped up competition from international banking rivals in a fast-growing market has left Chinese banks with no choice but to upgrade. Home-grown banks are now expanding their financial offerings and beefing up their IT infrastructure to keep up with highly-experienced foreign competitors vying for a piece of the more than $4 trillion in deposits held in China (and the growing demand for bank accounts, credit cards, mortgages and wealth management services among more affluent Chinese consumers).

One company that sees its future fortunes in the Chinese banking industry is Yucheng Technologies Limited (Nasdaq: YTEC), a leading information technology and outsourcing solutions provider. Yucheng provides services including IT consulting, system integration, financial software development, telephone and Internet banking, call center installation and support and risk management solutions to some of the largest banks, insurance companies and securities firms in China.