Forex / Economy news

TOKYO (Thomson Financial) - The Cabinet Office will upgrade its assessment of personal spending in its economic report for July, while maintaining its general view of the Japanese economy for a third straight month, the Nikkei reported on Thursday.The government said last month that the economy is recovering, despite weakness in industrial production in some sectors...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Congress did not appear in any hurry on Wednesday to raise taxes on private equity firms and their wealthy executives, nor to regulate hedge funds more closely.At a Senate hearing, industry warnings that higher taxes on private equity partnerships could dry up venture capital were heeded by lawmakers from states where finance and technology are key to the economy...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Senators from states where finance and technology are key to the economy on Wednesday heeded industry warnings that efforts to raise taxes on private equity partnerships could dry up capital that spurs innovation.Congress is debating whether to force private equity groups and hedge funds -- and their managers -- to pay more taxes, but a wide swath of industries, including venture capitalists, is concerned that the effort could affect all companies set up as limited partnerships...

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - US Senators struggled Wednesday to figure out whether hedge fund and private equity managers were paying their fair share of taxes on their immense profits, and what if anything Congress should do about it.The Blackstone IPO, in particular, has prompted a populist reaction...

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - Members of the House today said they are worried about whether hedge funds are sufficiently regulated, but nonetheless appeared content to leave the issue in the hands of US regulators, as none warned of any pending legislation in this area...

STRASBOURG, France (Thomson Financial) - The European Central Bank should consider publishing forecasts on the likely impact of its interest rate increases on euro zone house prices, a key European Parliament member said."Perhaps it is time to develop an ECB formula to help forecast the likely effect of interest rate increases on house prices," said Gay Mitchell, who prepared the parliament economic and monetary affairs committee's annual report on the ECB...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Lawmakers on Wednesday said tighter regulation of hedge funds may be necessary to protect ordinary investors from unforseen losses.That was the consensus among many Democrats, and some Republicans, at a House hearing focused on Bush administration recommendations for managing the economic risks posed by hedge funds and their high-dollar cousins, private equity firms...

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - The new jobless claims number due out Thursday morning is as likely to raise as it is to reduce the confusion about what is going on in the US labour market.The expectation is another 316,000 new first-time claims for unemployment insurance...

STRASBOURG, France (Thomson Financial) - Euro group president Jean-Claude Juncker said the widening pay gap between executives and employees is undermining calls from the European Central Bank and euro zone finance ministers for wage moderation."A large number of business leaders receive payments which do not correspond in any way to the repeated calls from the bank and the euro group for wage moderation," Juncker told the European Parliament...

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - The recent widening of credit spreads is not yet posing a threat to most leveraged hedge funds or to the financial system, according to Federal Reserve Board Governor Kevin Warsh.Though the potential for systemic risk exists, he said in testimony to the House Financial Services Committee, "thus far the repricing of credit risk does not appear to have imposed significant strains on the financial system"...

STRASBOURG, France (Thomson Financial) - Euro group president Jean-Claude Juncker said the appreciation of the euro reflects the dynamism of the euro zone economy and countries who complain about the currency's strength should focus more on improving the competitiveness of their economies...

STRASBOURG, France (Thomson Financial) - European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet called on euro zone politicians to be responsible in their comments on the euro's exchange rate."Let's be as responsible as possible in the present circumstances," Trichet told the European Parliament...

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - There are not likely to be "significant spillover effects" from the housing crunch to the rest of the economy or the financial system, Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank president Charles Plosser said today.Housing's drag on the US economy should "diminish but continue until sometime next year", he said in notes for a London speech released to reporters by the Philadelphia Fed...

STRASBOURG, France (Thomson Financial) - European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet said the ECB is ready to take "firm and timely action" to counter inflation risks if necessary."Looking forward, firm and timely action continues to be warranted to ensure price stability over the medium term," Trichet told the European Parliament...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - The UK is to consult on a new regime for covered bonds to help mortgage lenders finance more affordable 20-25 year fixed-rate mortgages, said Prime Minister Gordon Brown.Outlining a draft legislative programme ahead of this year's Queen's Speech, Brown said Chancellor Alistair Darling MP will report by the Budget in spring next year "on how to overcome any barriers preventing lenders from offering people long-term mortgages"...

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - US home prices should recover in 2008 after existing home sales improve later this year and new home sales increase early next year, the National Association of Realtors said today.The realtor group said existing home prices should rise 1...

BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - China's tax revenue rose 29 pct year-on-year in the first half of the year to 2.49 trln yuan, the official Xinhua news agency reported, citing figures from the State Administration of Taxation.China's tax revenue grew 21.9 pct in 2006...

BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - China's broad money supply, or M2, was up 17.06 pct year-on-year to 37.78 trln yuan at the end of June, the central bank said.In May, M2 rose 16.74 pct year on year to 36.97 trln yuan.In a statement on its website, the central bank said M1 rose 20...

LISBON (Thomson Financial) - The bank of Portugal said it has increased its forecast for domestic GDP growth in 2008 to 2.2 pct from its earlier figure of 2.1 pct.In its summer report, the central bank said it is maintaining its forecast for GDP to grow at 1...

PARIS (Thomson Financial) - The French government sees GDP growth in 2007 of 2.0-2.5 pct, based on first quarter data already released and "the latest available information", which it did not detail.The forecast matches the government's previously stated target, and was contained in a report prepared in preparation for a legislative debate next week by Budget Minister Eric Woerth...