Fx Trading

'Prada' movie spotlights nasty boss phenom

In this undated photo provided by 20th Century Fox, shows Meryl Streep, playing Miranda Priestly, a capricious and fear-inspiring fashion editor, in the new film,'The Devil Wears Prada.' (AP Photo/20th Century Fox)

A famous designer throws a fit and hurls a pair of scissors at his assistant. The ladies room at a top fashion glossy is routinely filled with weeping underlings who've been dressed down. One boss enforces a starvation regime: You can't go out for lunch, but you can't eat at your desk, either.

These could be scenes from "The Devil Wears Prada," the new film starring

Meryl Streep as Miranda Priestly, a capricious and fear-inspiring fashion editor. But they're actual anecdotes from the fashion world. Insiders agree that the depiction of scary-boss excess in the film, and even more in the book, is dead-on.

Japanese Bond Trading Reduced by System Malfunction (Update10)

June 29 (Bloomberg) -- Trading in Japan's government bond market, the world's biggest, was disrupted for half a day after a computer malfunction at the nation's largest fixed-income broker.

Japan Bond Trading Co. stopped trading for 2 hours and 25 minutes because of a problem with a server. The fault was fixed and trading resumed at 12:25 p.m. Tokyo time, the company said in a statement today.

The failure comes five months after the Tokyo Stock Exchange was forced to shorten its hours when computers failed to cope with a surge in orders. Trading in Japanese bonds has risen 42 percent this year to the highest since June 2004 as evidence of stronger economic growth stoked speculation the central bank will increase interest rates next quarter.

``This harms the credibility of the Japanese financial system, especially after we saw the stock market's trouble,'' said Toru Umemoto, chief currency analyst at Barclays Capital in Tokyo.

EUROPE MARKETS: European Indexes Slip As Auto Sector Pressures

European shares dipped lower in light trading on Tuesday, with the automobile sector in decline on concerns over the state of both the U.S. and European market.
The U.K.'s FTSE 100 indexdeclined 0.5% at 5,858, the German DAX Xetra 30 indexdipped 0.2% at 5,704 and the French CAC-40 indexlost 0.4% at 4,959.
U.S. stocks closed higher on Monday after unexpectedly economic weak data were seen as advancing an argument that U.S. interest-rate increases are nearing an end.U.S. stock markets are closed Tuesday for the Independence Day holiday.
In the currency markets, the euro rose 0.1% at $1.2802 versus the dollar, while the British pound advanced 0.2% at $1.8456 against the greenback.
The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 indexedged 0.3% lower at 321.34, pressured by automakers including Renault, DaimlerChrysler (DCX) and Fiat.

Spencer in the big league

Michael Spencer founded Icap 20 years ago and last week it entered the FTSE100 index. In an exclusive interview with Sylvia Pfeifer, he reveals his views on the future of the City

Anyone wanting a ticket for next weekend's World Cup Final will need to pay over the odds - but perhaps not as much as Michael Spencer, the flamboyant boss of Icap, the broking group.

The price of Spencer's ticket includes a hefty gift for his wife: the match is being played on his wedding anniversary, necessitating the purchase of an expensive peace offering - and Spencer's agreement to take their two sons.

But Spencer will not be overly concerned by the cost. Not only is he one of the City's wealthiest individuals, with a personal fortune estimated at more than £700m, but also last week the company he founded 20 years ago broke into the elite club of Britain's 100 biggest quoted companies, the FTSE100 index.

RBI Reference rate for US dollar and Euro

Mumbai: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today fixed the Reference rate for the US currency at Rs 46.1200 per dollar and the single European unit at Rs 58.9000 per Euro from Rs 46.1500 and Rs 58.8000 respectively yesterday.In a press release issued here by the apex bank, the exchange rates of Great Britain Pound and Japanese Yen against the Rupee have been given as Rs 84.7178 per pound and Rs 40.05 per 100 yen respectively, based on the reference rate for US Dollar and middle rates of the cross currency quotes at 12 noon.The Reference rate is based on 12 noon rates of a few select banks in Mumbai and the SDR-Rupee rate will be based on this rate, the release added.

Copyright 2006 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of PTI content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent.

Emerging Asia FX-Still weak, focus on policy

SINGAPORE, July 6 (Reuters) - Asian currencies extended their falls on Thursday as investors sold the yen ahead of a European Central Bank meeting later in the day and U.S. jobs data this week.

Most of these currencies had dropped after a 3-day rally on Wednesday on news North Korea had launched about seven missiles.

Trading was driven by policy expectations. Analysts expect the ECB will keep rates unchanged but possibly adopt a hawkish tone. The Bank of Japan is seen raising rates from zero next week, and U.S. data on private sector employment on Wednesday raised chances of another rate rise in the United States.

In Asia, Bank Indonesia decides whether to cut its double-digit rates on Thursday while the Bank of Korea meets on Friday.

The policy uncertainty weakened the yen by half a percent to levels around 115.50 per dollar.

Fx Trading Link Partners and Resources