Month: July 2013

By MoneyMorning.com.au

How many times do you come up with an idea and think to yourself, ‘Wow, I should really do that.’

People in general have the capacity to come up with great ideas. We are all inherently creative to some extent. But there are a few key factors that separate great ideas from great technologies and from great businesses.

In this current global economic environment, a lot of businesses are struggling. There’s a lot of doom and gloom about. Yet it seems every other day there’s a story about successful technology companies making billions of dollars.

Recently the ‘Billion dollar Buy-out’ is the catch phrase running around tech hubs like Silicon Valley. But what takes a company from being worth nothing with a great technology to, to a billion dollar business?

Before we look at the answer first I should point out that, like with the English language there’s an exception to every rule. There are some companies that just have technology so good it sells itself.

A good example of that is Atlassian. Atlassian is an Australian private company that has no sales force, just a great software solution. They develop proprietary software that helps companies track information, analyse data, collaborate on documents and develop their own programs.

Not quite a billion dollar company yet, Atlassian has gone from start-up to about $200 million in just 10 years. Their clientele includes eBay, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Also there are some great technology companies worth billions of dollars like photo-sharing website Instagram, and microblogging platform Tumblr. But…that doesn’t make them great businesses either. Mainly because they don’t actually make any money. These two are examples of a great idea that people love, but don’t pay for.

But there are a lot of great ideas in the world. A lot of inventions, a lot of smart people coming up with world changing ideas. Some get lucky (like Instagram and Tumblr), some fail and some take years of hard work.

For those ideas to become great companies, the pathway to that destination is relatively simple.

1. Have an idea,
2. Turn the idea into an invention,
3. Sell the invention to some people to see if it’s good,
4. Create a business to sell invention to more people,
5. Have plan for business, make it big,
6. Sell invention to many people,
7. Make invention better,
8. Make company bigger,
9. Repeat cycle and add to business model,
10. Sell for a billion dollars.

Sounds simple enough? Well unfortunately it’s not. Most people get to step one easy enough. But then most people will fail at step 2.

For the very few that make it to step 2. Most of them will fail at step 3. And for those that make it to step 4…they are likely to fail in the first year of business.

The Best of the Worst and the Best of the Best

But some do make it through the other side, and still can’t take great technology to a great business. Here’s a couple of examples of great technology, but not great businesses.

1. Segway.

   The launch of Segway had hype and fanfare like nothing before. It was the answer to the problems of personal transportation. It was a game changer…well that’s what the owners believed at least.

   The Segway is actually an amazing piece of technology. With inbuilt gyroscopes it’s a self-balancing battery powered transportation device.

   It’s got a swathe of computers and motors that work in tandem to make the machine work. But Segway never really took off as a business. Why?

   Well the technology is great and the sales pitch is outstanding. But the Segway didn’t actually solve a big problem. It was just something new and interesting. It ultimately failed to disrupt the transportation market it was aiming at, personal transport. People couldn’t afford it and didn’t find it particularly helped them in any way.

2. MiniDisc.

   Cassette tape ended the reign of the record player. The ability to have a compact portable audio device was ground breaking, but then CD’s came along and spoiled the party for cassette tapes.

   CD’s were the major format at the time, and dominated the music industry for many years. But in 1992 a new technology and format came out that was going to spell the end of CD’s forever. It was great technology, it was the MiniDisc.

   You could quickly search through discs, and even record and edit on the portable device itself. It was better tech than all other audio formats.

   But the problem with MiniDisc was hot on its heels was still better technology. Technology that would change the way we listen to music, and change the whole music industry forever. MP3′s and MP3 players.

Each of these examples highlights a different problem that stops great technology from being a great business.

Segway had tunnel vision and weren’t prepared to accept that as great as their technology was it didn’t really solve a problem for lots of people. And although they are still a business, they certainly aren’t a great technology business.

MiniDisc weren’t open and aware to other technologies in the market place. They failed to appreciate the market in which they were trying to build a business. Within a few years a superior technology simply overtook it.

But for point of comparison, let’s look at some great business, and see what made them stand out in a competitive world of technology.

1. Apple.

   You simply can’t go past Apple when it comes to turning great technology into a great business.

   When Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak put together the first Apple computer they didn’t know the impact it would have on the world. But what they did have was a great vision to put a Personal Computer in the homes of millions of people.

   The benefit they had here was that they started a whole new industry. The Personal Computer didn’t exist at that stage. So the two Steve’s had the advantage of being early movers.

   That’s not to say there weren’t competitors. IBM and Dell became competition, as did Microsoft when it came to operating systems and software. But what Apple did was make their products beautiful and easy to use. And what they were able to do was design, market and sell their products like no one else.

2. Nokia.

   Although not at the pinnacle it once was, Nokia is an example of taking great technology and turning it into a great business.

   Mobile phones were all the rage from the late 80′s into he 90′s and of course the smartphone revolution today. But Nokia dominated the mobile phone market through the 2000′s. How?

   What Nokia did was make a product accessible to the masses using available technology. Mobile phones were expensive devices that only the affluent and rich could afford.

   Nokia changed all that by putting to market an affordable mobile phone for everyone. This led them to having the top 6 bestselling mobile phone models of all time.

   They sold almost one billion units worldwide between those top 6 models alone. Nokia phones are still the number one used phone in developing nations across Africa.

There a couple of key factors that made these two companies tech giants of the world.

Apple had the combination of a great technical guy in Wozniak, but a great salesman in Jobs. Without the creative and marketing genius of Jobs, Apple would simply be a company for computer hobbyists.

If Wozniak had gone it alone he wouldn’t have had a great company. If Jobs had done it himself the company wouldn’t have had great technology.

Likewise Nokia didn’t necessarily have the marketing genius and personality of a Jobs-like leader. But they identified an unmet need in a market that affected millions of people.

They created a big solution to a big problem. And that was to put affordable mobile phones in the hands of everyone. They also had the advantage of being the first company to mass market cheap mobile phones.

The Great Business Checklist

When we look at these basic examples of great technologies, it’s fair to say not one technology is necessarily better than another. They all meet an unmet need, and they all were new technologies of their time.

But what companies like Nokia and Apple were able to do was have the leadership and management in place to make great technologies into great businesses. They also met an unmet need that impacted millions of people around the world and were also able to make their technologies simple and accessible to everyone.

And that’s the key difference between great technology, and great technology companies. It’s really got nothing to do with the technology at all.

It’s about the people that lead the technology and the team that’s involved to take it from good to great. It’s about making it accessible and relevant to lots of people, not just one small segment.

These companies also had the foresight to see when something wasn’t working. For them failure was par for the course, just a part of the process. And both Apple and Nokia had their fair share of failures. But they saw the problems, and fixed them the next time around.

So here’s the checklist that makes a great business from a great technology.

With the steps outlined and the checklist above, there’s potential to turn great technology into a great business. It’s hard, takes years and there’s a very good chance it won’t work.

But the right tech, the right people, the right plan and the drive to make it happen, gives a fighting chance of making a truly great technology business.

Sam Volkering+
Technology Analyst, Revolutionary Tech Investor

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From the Archives…

Is This the Spark to Send Australian Property Crashing?
26-07-2013 – Kris Sayce

Why it’s Deflation…Not Inflation, that’s Heading Our Way
25-07-2013 – Vern Gowdie

Why You Must Avoid This Big Investing Mistake…
24-07-2013 – Kris Sayce

The Dark Side of Technology: Part 2
23-07-2013 – Sam Volkering

The Dark Side of Technology: Part 1
22-07-2013 – Sam Volkering

By WallStreetDaily.com

Try to wrap your brain around these numbers…

Cyber criminals launched 1.5 billion web attacks in 2012, infiltrating 6.5 million unique domains. Malicious codes corrupted servers in the internet zones of 202 countries, just 20 of which accounted for 96.1% of all of those detected by IT security vendor, Kaspersky Labs.

The United States earned the dubious distinction of holding the No. 1 spot. We’ve been a victim of 413,622,459 attacks.

Think we have a big problem on our hands? The scary thing is, sometimes I’m not so sure whose side our government is on.

On one hand, the Department of Homeland Security acknowledges that public and private sectors need to share information intimately to advance the fight against cyber security. After all, private companies own the majority of critical infrastructure in the United States.

On the other hand, since March, the DHS has cancelled two training and networking conferences that teach utility companies how to defend against cyber attacks. The reason? Budget cuts.

And not to rub salt in any cyber victims’ wounds, but the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) is barely limping along. As of April 18, the Senate refused to vote on it and is in the process of drafting its own version of the legislature.

Besides, CISPA – a law that would allow for information sharing by opening the gates of internet traffic between the U.S. government and some private sectors to beef up security – is hardly an adequate, long-term fix.

I seriously doubt it would have prevented what the Pentagon called “the largest leak of classified documents in its history.” (If you recall, WikiLeaks posted 400,000 pages on the Iraq War two years ago, and 4.8 million people had access to Top Secret information.)

As big a concern as national security is, it doesn’t even scrape the surface. For criminals, there’s really no limit to the havoc they can wreak on countries, businesses and individuals.

In fact, this headline just popped up on my computer screen: “Leak Exposed Securities and Exchange Commission Workers’ Data.” Apparently information on SEC employees kept appearing on federal agency computers after a former worker downloaded names, birthdays, and Social Security numbers and transferred them to another network.

On the heels of that news – and the recent Nasdaq community website hacking – the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) released a report saying that “half the world’s financial exchanges suffered cyber attacks in the past year.”

Like I said, nothing is sacred.

A recent report by the Ponemon Institute, 2012 Cost of Cyber Crime Study: United States, paints an even uglier picture:

• The average annualized cost of cyber crime for 56 organizations is $8.9 million per year, with a range of $1.4 million to $46 million. In 2011, the average annualized cost was $8.4 million.
• Companies in the study experienced 102 successful attacks per week and 1.8 successful attacks per company each week. This represents an increase of 42% from last year’s successful attack experience.
• The most costly cyber crimes are those caused by denial of service, malicious insiders and web-based attacks. Mitigation of such attacks requires enabling technologies such as security information and event management (SIEM), intrusion prevention systems, application security testing and enterprise governance, risk management and compliance solutions.

And as the costs of these attacks continue to mount, companies that provide theses “enabling technologies” will continue to thrive.

Our Chief Investment Strategist, Louis Basenese, recommended just such a company to WSD Insiders – KEYWAVE Holdings (KEYW). They’re already up by double digits with the position. But that’s not the only cyber security opportunity he’s recommended in the portfolio. Go here to upgrade your subscription now.

Ahead of the tape,

Karen Canella

The post Cyber Crime: Whose Side is the Gov’t on, Anyway? appeared first on  | Wall Street Daily.

Article By WallStreetDaily.com

Original Article: Cyber Crime: Whose Side is the Gov’t on, Anyway?

Article by Investazor.com

Starting with April this year the QQE program (quantitative and qualitative monetary easing) has been launched. Through this program, the Government is increasing annually the monetary basis by 60-70 trillion yen. The quantitative aspect is determined by the great amount of JGBs bought monthly while the qualitative aspect is represented by increasing average remaining maturity of the Bank’s JGB purchases to about 7 years. Positive effects have been observed in terms of stocks (whose prices rose), a flat long-term interest rates, a more favorable consumer’s sentiment and increased expectations for inflation.

The pace of growth is expected to evolve as: 2.8% for fiscal 2013, 1.3% for fiscal 2014, and 1.5% for fiscal 2015. The only disturbing factors are the two scheduled consumption tax hikes (this scenario is valid if the global economic situation remains stable otherwise, the strongest obstacle remains the anxious global economic evolution). An increase in the sales tax in considered to be mandatory in order to sustain the  ”repair” rhythm of the country’s finances.

In the meantime, Japanese officials are visiting China on the 29^th and 30^th of July in an attempt to build a mutually beneficial relationship and to solve the territorial disputes.

The post Japan May Face a Small Obstacle appeared first on investazor.com.

By www.CentralBankNews.info     Angola’s central bank held its main policy rate steady at 10.0 percent, citing a decline in inflation, rising credit to the economy, lower market interest rates and a stable exchange rate.
    The National Bank of Angola (BNA), which last cut its rate by 25 basis points in January, said the monthly inflation rate in June was 0.63 percent, down from May’s 0.87 percent, for an annual rate of 9.19 percent compared with 9.25 percent.
    Credit extended to the economy rose by 1.20 percent in June, reaching an outstanding stock of 2.752 billion kwanza, with an average interest rate on credit extended 181 days to 1 year of 12.17 percent for individuals and 14.41 percent for corporates, “maintaining the downward trend in interest rates.”
    The average reference exchange rate for the kwanza was 96.326 to the U.S. dollar at the end of June, compared with 96.045 at the end of April, “maintaining stability in the foreign exchange market.”
    During June the BNA sold $1.6525 billion worth of foreign exchange to the market for a total of $9.6345 billion in the first six month.
    While the BNA held its main rates steady, it added that its rediscount operations would be indexed to the interest rate of the marginal lending liquidity.

    www.CentralBankNews.info
   
   

By www.CentralBankNews.info     Israel’s central bank held its policy rate steady at 1.25 percent, saying economic activity has continued at its recent pace, making it less concerned over a further slowdown but inflation expectations are below the midpoint of the bank’s target range.
    The Bank of Israel (BOI), which cut rates twice in May to weaken the strong shekel, noted the currency’s effective exchange rate had strengthened by 0.9 percent this month against a background of continued expansionary monetary policies in major economies.
    The cost of homes, one of the BOI’s concerns in recent months, eased by 0.1 percent in April-May and previous months’ data have been revised down but “it is too early to determine if this represents a change in trend,” the bank said.
     Israel’s inflation rate rose to 2.0 percent in June from 0.9 percent, the highest rate in 10 months, mainly due to a rise in VAT, along with higher prices for clothing, footwear, fuel and electricity.
    Inflation expectations for the next 12 months by private forecasters eased to 1.7 percent after the latest inflation data while forecasts for the BOI’s policy rate one year from now remained stable at 1.1-1.2 percent on average. The BOI targets inflation of 1-3 percent.
    Economic activity in the second quarter is expected to be similar to the first quarter, though manufacturing exports continue to stand still, the BOI said.

    “Indicators which became available in the past month point to continued growth of economic activity at the relatively moderate pace of the past two years, which eased concerns of an additional slowdown in growth,” the bank said.  
    The third estimate of first quarter Gross Domestic Product growth was revised upwards to 2.9 percent, another factor that eased some of the BOI’s concerns. In the fourth quarter, GDP rose by an annual 2.6 percent.
     In March the BOI said economic activity was continuing to improve but it was still too early to tell if the economy had turned the corner.
    “The Bank of Israel will continue to monitor developments in the Israeli and global economies and financial markets, particularly in light of the continuing uncertainty in the global economy,” it said, adding it would use the tools available to achieve its objectives and also keep a “close watch on developments in the asset markets, including the housing market.”

    www.CentralBankNews.info

By The Sizemore Letter

It’s getting harder to find bargains in the stock market these days.  American stocks aren’t expensive, per se, but they’re not exactly a bargain either.

The S&P 500 trades for 17 times earnings, which is slightly above the long-term average.  If you’re aggressively buying U.S. stocks at these levels, you’re either expecting earnings growth to pick up speed in the coming quarters…or you’re looking to sell to a greater fool.

Yet across the Pond, there are some noteworthy values to be found.  Five years of on-again / off-again crisis have turned investors away from Old Europe and have created some real bargains for those of us willing to look.

I’ll start with Norwegian oil and gas giant Statoil ($STO).  I’ve had my eyes on Statoil for years—and recommended it in the March 2013 issue of the Sizemore Investment Letter—because of its unique strategic position.

You see, Statoil is the second-largest natural gas producer in Europe after Russia’s Gazprom.  Russia’s tendency to use its gas supplies as a geopolitical weapon has incentivized Europe to look elsewhere, and Statoil has been a major beneficiary.  Add to this Europe’s commitment to use less carbon-intensive energy sources as part of its environmental commitments, and you have the makings of an excellent macro backdrop.

Statoil is cheap to the point of being hard to believe.  It trades for 8 times forward earnings and 0.65 times sales.  With Europe in and out of recession, Wall Street just can’t get comfortable with owning a European energy stock.

Their loss.  Statoil pays 4% in dividends and has a long record of raising its dividend every year.  We can buy it and milk the dividend indefinitely while we’re waiting for its value to be realized.

Next on the list is Daimler ($DDAIF), my recommendation in InvestorPlace’s 10 Stocks for 2013 contest.  As this is going to press, Daimler was sitting pretty in first place with a 10-point lead over Mylan ($MYL) in the second spot.

Yet despite Daimler strong performance this year, the stock is still shockingly cheap.  Daimler—the premier global luxury automaker—trades for just 8 times earnings.  That represents a 45% discount to the broader German market, by Bloomberg estimates.

Daimler also trades for just 0.49 times sales and sports a 4% dividend…and nearly a third of its market cap is in cash.  Investors have been unwilling to pay up for the stock due to Europe’s economic malaise and due to fears of a hard Chinese landing.  Yet Daimler shares my view that the worst is already behind us in Europe and that the continent is (at least slowly) making a recovery.

Even after its recent run-up, Daimler is still a buy.

Finally, no list of European blue chips would be complete without beer giant Heineken ($HEINY).

Beer sales are actually pretty weak in Europe, and it’s not just due to the economy.  It’s demographics.  Heineken’s core beer-guzzling Baby Boomer clientele is drinking less as it ages, and it’s not being replaced by younger Europeans.  Like their American counterparts, younger Europeans tend to prefer vodka-based cocktails.

Let me let you in on a little secret: I don’t care.

Not in the slightest.  So long as Heineken’s European sales more or less stay steady and avoid rapid shrinkage, Heineken is still an excellent long-term growth stock for its presence in emerging markets and particularly Africa.

Africa is the last real frontier market, and Heineken already gets about a quarter of its profits from the continent.  As African living standards and incomes continue to rise, Heineken is in a unique position to benefit.

I consider Heineken one of those select few stocks that I would be comfortable buying and holding forever, or at least for the foreseeable future.  And today, you can buy it for less than 10 times earnings and 1.5 times sales.  As a point of reference, Anheuser-Busch InBev ($BUD) trades for 20 times earnings and 3.5 times sales…and the iconic maker of Bud Light and Stella Artois doesn’t have anything close to Heineken’s opportunities in Africa.

Disclosures: Sizemore Capital is long STO, DDAIF and HEINY.  This article first appeared on InvestorPlace.

SUBSCRIBE to Sizemore Insights via e-mail today.

London Gold Market Report
from Adrian Ash
BullionVault
Monday, 29 July 08:45 EST

WHOLESALE GOLD prices reversed an overnight drop of $10 per ounce to trade above $1335 lunchtime Monday in London, gaining in what dealers called “very quiet” trade.

 Silver also rallied from an earlier drop, adding 1.9% to trade above $20.10 per ounce.

Japanese stock markets fell hard as the Yen rose on the currency markets.

Commodities, European equities and major government bond prices held flat, with economists forecasting “no change” in either US Fed policy or the key language around reducing QE bond purchases in Wednesday’s monthly announcement.

 “We expect the FOMC meeting and the US payrolls report will be the highlights this week,” says a note from commodity and investment analysts at Germany’s Deutsche Bank.

 “A soft employment report would amplify the more dovish sentiment on [QE] tapering and sustain the cautious rebound in gold prices.”

 “Gold has made a terrific recovery,” Bloomberg quotes $3 billion fund manager Donald Selkin at National Securities Corp. in New York, “but there’s not too much to the upside for now.

 “People are going to wait and see what the Fed is going to do.”

 Gold investment positions in exchange-traded funds “have continued to trickle lower,” notes Barclays in London, pointing to the 23% drop from end-2012’s record levels.

 The giant SPDR Gold Trust shed another 5 tonnes last week, taking the bullion needed to back its shareholders’ investment to new four-and-a-half year lows below 928 tonnes.

 Should gold slip back below $1300 per ounce, warns Barclays, “an additional 160 tonnes [of gold ETF positions] become loss-making.”

 New gold ETFs traded for the first time in China today both slipped 1% in value as prices dropped.

 Together, the Huaan and Guotai gold ETFs fell well over two-thirds short of their sponsors’ investment targets, raising less than $261 million between them.

 Ahead of the coming US Fed and jobs data decision, hedge funds and other professional speculators raised their “net long” position on US gold futures to a 6-week high of nearly 180 tonnes in the week-ending last Tuesday, new data from US regulator the CFTC showed Friday.

 Private investors, however – the so-called “unreportable” category of speculative gold futures traders – meantime cut their net long position almost to zero, with bearish bets very nearly equal to bullish contracts.

 That position peaked at 195 tonnes equivalent in October 2012, just as gold prices began their descent from $1800 per ounce.

 “Short positioning had become quite extreme,” says a note from Swiss investment bank and London gold market-maker UBS. So there has been “some scaling back, especially ahead of key risk events this week.

 “Anticipation of the FOMC meeting on Wednesday and nonfarm payrolls on Friday is likely to deter large position-taking and result in more subdued market activity in the next few days.”

 Over in India – currently world No.1 for gold demand, but set to be eclipsed by China this year – prices for gold rose sharply on Monday as what local dealers called a “massive shortage” of metal due to government import restrictions bit harder.

 Indian premiums over and above international benchmarks hit up to $30 per ounce, Reuters reports, quoting Bachhraj Bamalwa of the All India Gems & Jewellery Trade Federation.

Adrian Ash

BullionVault

Gold price chart, no delay | Buy gold online

Adrian Ash is head of research at BullionVault, the secure, low-cost gold and silver market for private investors online, where you can buy gold and silver in Zurich, Switzerland for just 0.5% commission.

(c) BullionVault 2013

Please Note: This article is to inform your thinking, not lead it. Only you can decide the best place for your money, and any decision you make will put your money at risk. Information or data included here may have already been overtaken by events – and must be verified elsewhere – should you choose to act on it.

By www.CentralBankNews.info Here’s today’s Central Bank News’ link list, click through if you missed the previous link list. The list comprises news about central banks that is not covered by Central Bank News. The list is updated during the day with the latest developments so readers don’t miss any important news.

By HY Markets Forex Blog

Markets in Europe started the trading week green, as major central banks in the US, UK and Europe will maintain the current monthly monetary stimulus measures as they meet later during the week.

The European Euro Stoxx 50 opened the market gaining 0.39% to 2,752.73, while the German DAX advanced 0.54% to 8,289.3. In France, the country’s CAC 40 index edged up 0.41% higher at 3,985.27, while the UK’s FTSE 100 edged down 0.01% to 6,538.80.

The European Central Bank (ECB) is expected to announce their rates decision on Thursday, as to whether to proceed with refinancing rate or minimum bid rate.

However, investors and analysts are expecting the benchmark rate to remain at its current rate 0.50% and unchanged.

The Federal Reserve’s (Fed) upcoming meeting remains the main focus for investors, as they look forward to the two-day meeting for possible hints on how long the central bank may continue its monthly stimulus program.

Earlier this month, the Federal Reserve (Fed) chairman Ben Bernanke said that it’s still early to decide when to start cutting down the central bank’s bond-buying program and the bank still need more proof that the economy is strong and stable.

The US non-farm payroll reports is expected to be released on Friday, which is expected to show an increase in US employment by an additional 192,000 jobs in month of July, while the rate of unemployment is predicted to show a slight fall from 7.6 to 7.5.

In Italy, the business confidence is predicted to improve from previous month’s record of 90.2 to 91 points for the month of July.

The post Europe shares climbs ahead of Fed meeting appeared first on | HY Markets Official blog.

Article provided by HY Markets Forex Blog

By HY Markets Forex Blog

Asian stocks were seen falling for the fourth day, as yen strengthened and lenders dropped, while the Chinese government attempt to boost growth failed.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index dropped 2.44% lower to 13,785.63 points as of 1:44am GMT, while the broader Topix fell by 2.86% to 1,135.67 points at the same time.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dived 0.94% lower to 21,762.01 points as of 1:48am GMT, while the Chinese mainland Shanghai composite dropped 1:28% as of 2:03am GMT and the Korean benchmark Kospi index declined 0.05% to 1,909.90 points  as of 1.41am GMT.

The New Zealand benchmark NZX 50 index fell 0.13% as of 1:40am GMT, while in Australia; the S&P/ASX 200 index advanced 0.09% higher to 5,046.30 points.

Among the Japanese exporters that dropped were the Tokyo vehicle manufacturers Toyota Motor Corp  , as they  declined 3.3%  , while the Japanese yen was seen trading close to a one-month low to the U.S dollar . Toshiba fell by more than 5%, while JFE Holdings edged lower by 6%.

Japan’s biggest trading lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, declined 3.5%, extending its two month high weekly declines.

The Japanese yen was seen trading at ¥97.63 as at 2:08am GMT, as it continues to rally.

On Friday, the Finance Minster of China Lou Jiwei said that the Chinese government will increase efforts to increase the economy growth and the government will go through “a lot of difficulties and challenges” in achieving the goal.

Governor of the People’s Bank of China Zhou Xiaochuan said that China would continue to maintain a cautious monetary policy.

The post Shares in Asia falls as Yen strengthens appeared first on | HY Markets Official blog.

Article provided by HY Markets Forex Blog