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In China the Government owns the Banks; the bankers do not own the Government. China’s stimulus plan is working better than in the US and the UK because the government is using the banks for public ends, rather than allowing the banks to use the government for private ends. In the USA, the banks are the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill; they own the Government.

The USA is spending trillions of greenbacks to bail out its banking system, leaving its economy to languish, as China, now called a “miracle economy,” decoupled from the rest of the world, is maintaining a phenomenal 8% annual growth rate. That, by the way, is being questioned by lots of Pols, commentators, economists and other talking heads, as they ask how that growth is possible, when other countries relying heavily on exports have suffered major downturns and remain in the doldrums. Read more

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Crude Oil rose about US$1 toward US$74bbl to settle at a 10 month high Friday as data in the United States promised economic recovery and a revival in energy demand. US Crude for October delivery settled up 98 cents at US$73.89bbl, the highest settle since October 20. London Brent crude for October settled up 86 cents at US$74.19bbl Crude Oil gained US$6.38 on the week, about 10%, from the US$67.51 settle on August 14. The US$ was down against the Euro, helping to support commodity prices, with investors showing some appetite for risk.

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Universal Music has secured the international rights to 38 albums recorded by Frank Sinatra, heralding an acceleration of plans to commercialize the entertainer’s estate on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the release of My Way. Frank Sinatra Enterprises, a joint venture established in 2007 between the Sinatra family and Warner Music, will announce on Friday that Universal Music Group International will take over the catalogue rights outside North America from Warner. The venture is one of several ideas being studied by trustees of the estate of Michael Jackson as they consider how to capitalize on renewed interest in the singer’s music and image since his death in June. The Jackson estate on Thursday awarded .Universal’s Bravado subsidiary global rights over Michael Jackson merchandise. Long established stars such as Sinatra, who died in 1998, and Elvis Presley have become attractive to a music industry struggling to break new artists in a more crowded entertainment landscape.

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Oracle gained clearance from the US Department of Justice for its US$7.4B acquisition of Sun Microsystems after an earlier delay in the approval process threatened to derail the transaction. The US software company had originally hoped to the close the deal quickly, but hit a stumbling block when the DOJ failed to give its approval at the end of an initial investigation. Oracle attributed the delay to scrutiny of the licensing arrangements surrounding Java, the programming language and software development tools that are controlled by Sun and which Oracle has singled out as the main reason for its acquisition. Some of Oracle’s biggest rivals, such as IBM, rely heavily on the Java technology, putting them at a potential disadvantage once Oracle takes control. Oracle has said that any steps it took to gain an advantage from its control of Java would be self-defeating, since this would only serve to fragment the broad support for Java in the technology world and undermine its value. Read more

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Gold futures on the COMEX Division of the New York Mercantile Exchange closed higher on Wednesday as crude oil jumped sharply upon unexpectedly plunging oil inventory. Silver finished lower, but platinum rose. Gold price for December delivery climbed US$5.60, or 0.6%, to finish at US$944.80 oz. The Energy Information Association reported on Wednesday that US Crude Oil in storage for the week ended Aug. 14 fell by 8.4M bbls. This is much lower than economists’ expectations of a 1.3M bbl increase. Sparked by the tightened oil stockpile, benchmark Crude Oil for September delivery soared US$2.47, or 3.6%, to US$71.66 bbl by the end of Gold floor trading time. Worries on inflation helped the yellow metal metal regain strength and close the session higher. In the currency markets, the Dollar index, a gauge measuring the greenback’s value against six major currencies, stood at 78.438, down from the intra-day high of 79.225 in the morning session. A weaker US$ is considered to boost Gold’s demand as the dollar-denominated yellow metal becomes cheaper. December silver finished at US$13.909 oz, down 8.6 pennies. October Platinum rose US$9.30 to US$1,241.40 oz.

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Japan’s gross domestic product (GDP) achieved the first growth in five quarters in the Q-2, indicating that the world’s second largest economy has climbed out of recession. According to a preliminary report released by the cabinet office Monday, the Japanese economy grew by an annualized 3.7% in real terms in the April-June period, the first rise since the Q-3 Y 2008 when Japan, along with the 15-nation Euro-zone, sank into its first recession in seven years as the global financial crisis took a heavy toll on the world’s second largest economy and curbed demand for its exports.. The expansion in GDP, which was lifted by consumer and government spending, came following a revised annualized 11.7% plunge in the previous quarter and a revised 13.1% dive in the October-December quarter of 2008. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the economy rose 0.9% in the Q-2, said the office in a preliminary report. Meanwhile, consumer spending was up 0.8%quarter-on-quarter in real terms while corporate capital spending dipped 4.3 percent, according to the report. Public investment jumped 8.1% , pushed by the government’s fiscal stimulus packages to fight the recession, compared with a 9.5% fall in housing investment.

Popularity: 2% [?]