February represented the eighth straight month of losses in the Commodities space, however the pace of decline seems to have slowed dramatically. Coupled with potential unexpected inflation, some predict commodities could be poised for a turnaround.
NYSE Euronext announced trading volumes for its global cash equities and derivatives exchanges for February 2009. NYSE Euronext U.S. cash products handled average daily volume increased 31.4% to 4.1 billion shares.
Following a disastrous year for the capital markets, only 8 of 92 companies from Russia and the CIS finished the year with a higher market capitalization than at their time of listing. This is according to IPO Pioneers 4, an annual report released by The PBN Company, a strategic and financial communications consultancy.
Fitch Ratings says that share buyback programmes at large European capital goods companies are likely to stay on hold in 2009 as companies strive to preserve their cash in view of the uncertain outlook for their end markets and the global economy.
The number of companies remaining in the IPO pipeline dropped to 57 by the end of the fourth quarter (31 December, 2008), about a 30% decrease from the end of the third quarter (30 September, 2008), according to the quarterly Ernst & Young LLP US IPO Pipeline study.
Towards the end of 2008, China's securities market went though the craziest "switchback" in its history. The 2006-2007 rising tide that originated at the end of 2005 brought the Shanghai Composite Index to the peak of 6,124 points in October 2007. In mid-January 2008, the index still remained high at 5,500 points.
NYSE Euronext reported a net loss of ($1,338) million, or ($5.06) per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2008, and ($738) million, or ($2.78) per diluted share, for the full year 2008.
U.S. cash products handled average daily volume decreased 8.9% to 3.5 billion shares. European derivatives products ADV was 3.8 million futures and options contracts, a decrease of 18.4% from January 2008, primarily driven by a decline in interest rate trading volume.
As concerns over job security and poor investment portfolio performance finally sink in for investors, increased numbers of active investors now say they are adjusting investment strategies and trimming household budgets to combat the current economic conditions, according to a late January survey of 300 equities and options traders conducted by online broker TradeKing.
CME Group, the world's largest and most diverse derivatives exchange, announced January volume averaged 9.5 million contracts per day, down 41 percent from January 2008, which was the second-highest monthly volume ever on a combined basis.
