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Orders for US durable goods rebounded in September, a positive sign for the manufacturing sector, according to government data released Wednesday. The Commerce Department said new orders for manufactured durable goods expected to last at least three years rose 1.0% in September, matching economists’ expectations. September’s rise in orders followed a 2.6% decline in August and a 4.8% surge in July. A 7.9% rise in orders for machinery, the best showing since an 8.5% surge in March 2008, led the overall increase. Excluding the transportation sector, where orders can vary widely from month to month, new orders rose 0.9% in September after a 0.4% fall in August. Although the manufacturing sector has shown signs of recovery, many economists are worried that demand could falter in the months ahead as various government stimulus programs expire.

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Top steel company ArcelorMittal, based in Luxembourg, announced Wednesday the first profit of US$903M for Q-3 after 9 losing months. Due to combined initiatives including selected growth projects in Key emerging markets, adjusted financial policy and strategic investment, the giant steel maker gained a net income of US$903M, with shipments of 18.2 million tons, up 7% from Q-2, the company said in a statement. “We have seen the first signs of recovery in the third quarter … and we expect fourth quarter crude steel capacity utilization to be approximately 70%,” Lakshmi Mittal, chairman and CEO of the company said in the statement. The new income is less than 1/4 of the income of Y 2008’s Q-3 at US$3.821B, and the whole loss for the first nine months of this year has reached US$952M. As worldwide market of automotive and construction were heavily hit by the financial crisis, the operating environment of the steel maker remains challenging. Read more

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The Nasdaq OMX Group, Inc. has welcomed 22 companies from China to the Nasdaq Stock Market year- to-date in Y 2009, it was reported on Wednesday. The 22 listed Chinese companies, include eight IPOs, 13 OTCBB upgrades, and one switch to Nasdaq from NYSE AMEX. “China is the largest and most important overseas market for us, with 116 listed companies,” said Bob Greifeld, chief executive officer of Nasdaq OMX. “Companies going public in today’s market are looking for greater visibility to global investors and seeking better intelligence on investor activity from their exchange. As a result, we are seeing more companies coming to Nasdaq and increased interest in the public company support services we provide,” he added. Shengda Games, which was listed on September 25, is one of the largest US IPOs this year and the largest capital raise for a Chinese company in Y 2009. There are currently 116 Chinese listed companies on Nasdaq, including Baidu, Nasdaq’s largest listed company in China and a member of the prestigious Nasdaq-100 Index. Companies span all major sectors including technology, media and telecom, consumer, industrials, healthcare, energy, materials and financials.

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US new home sales dropped in September as the government’s tax credit for 1st time home buyers is about to expire, according to official data released on Wednesday. The Commerce Department said sales decreased 3.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402,000 from the downwardly revised 417,000 in August, and slumped 7.8% from a year ago. The September data were much lower than most economists’ forecast of 440,000 units. It was also the 1st decline since March. The median sales price in September was down 9.1% to US$204,800 from US$225,200 in Y 2008. Analysts said the housing market remained fragile, with the country’s unemployment rate staying high and consumers reluctant to spend. With the US$8,000 tax credit program for 1st time home buyers set to expire on Nov. 30, home builders and economists are worried that house selling will plunge after the deadline, further hurting the fragile real-estate market. The US Congress is considering extending the tax credit through March 2010 and gradually phasing it out over the rest of next year. It is widely expected that the tax credit will be extended by the Congress.

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Casino operator Wynn Resorts Ltd. posted better than expected quarterly earnings Tuesday, but a downbeat outlook ruffeled investors and the shares fell 10%. On a conference call with analysts and investors, Wynn executives said bookings for Las Vegas conventions and meetings remain weak and and high end domestic business is still MIA (missing-in-action). Wynn earlier this month raised about US$1.8B via a Hong Kong listing of shares in its Wynn Macau Ltd unit, reported net income of US$34.2M, or 28 cents per diluted share, compared with US$51.2M, or 49 cents per share, in Y 2008. Adjusted for property charges and other items, the Las Vegas-based company posted a profit of 33 cents per share, which beat the average analyst estimate of 15 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters. Wynn, run by casino mogul Steve Wynn, operates two casino-resorts in Las Vegas and one in Macau, the only place in China where gambling is legal. The company’s second Macau resort, Encore Macau, is scheduled to open April 1.

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The US Dollar firmed up a bit as traders cover short positions, and higher yielding instruments fell on profit taking. The US$ was a bit firmer Tuesday, pulling up from its recent 14 month lows, as investors unwound short positions and took profits in high-yielding currencies after a sharp drop in stocks and commodities. The VIX indicator .VIX, Wall Street’s favourite barometer of market volatility, jumped 9.16% Monday, highlighting the skittish sentiment on stocks, and other riskier assets like growth linked currencies. The US$, a safe-haven when doubts about a global recovery emerge, traded firm around the 76 mark against a basket of currencies, posting its best daily gain since September Monday, pulling further away from a 14 month low of 74.94 on Oct. 21. Savvy market observers said the heavy short positioning on the US$ had made many investors hesitant to sell the “greenback” despite the economy’s weak fundamentals. Data late last week showed currency speculators increased their bets against the US$ in the week to Oct. 20 with the value of net short positions rising to US$18.65B from US$17.99B the week prior. Read more

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