India's' Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth has slipped to 6.9 per cent in the second quarter, the lowest in over two years.

Edinburgh, Scotland -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/07/2011 -- The Indian economy grew at its lowest rate in more than two years in the quarter ended in September, hurt by high local borrowing costs and a deepening euro-zone crisis, sparking growth concerns that could lead to an early change in the central bank's tight monetary stance.

Chandrajit Banerjee, director-general of the Confederation of Indian Industry, said corporate India is "extremely concerned" about the country's economic growth trajectory. He warned that a pullback in investments and high borrowing costs threatened to curb India's fast-growing economy further in coming months. Gross domestic product grew 6.9% from a year earlier, the government said Wednesday. Weakness in the second quarter was broad-based. Manufacturing, accounting for 16 percent of GDP, grew at only 2.7 percent and mining contracted 2.9 percent. Economists suspected the pace of economic growth may languish at seven percent in the coming quarters, and that even if the central bank isn't willing to cut interest rates, it might feel compelled to ease monetary conditions by other means.

The overall economy has been hit by a confluence of factors. Inflation has been persistently high all year, policy inertia has hurt investment and industrial output, and now capital outflows have pushed the rupee to new lows. The latest GDP figures marked the slowest rate of expansion since the second quarter of 2009, when India and the global economy started to recover from the 2008 financial crisis, thanks to monetary and fiscal stimulus. Since March 2010, the Reserve Bank of India began to raise interest rates to prevent the economy from overheating. After 13 rate hikes, however, signs of a slowdown have started to appear this year, just as the global economy is beginning to falter again and the crisis in the euro zone has curbed global investments.

The reading was in line with the median estimate in a poll of 19 economists, but was lower than the 7.7% increase in the April-June quarter as manufacturing slowed sharply and mining output fell. Last month, India's central bank reduced its growth forecast for the year ending in March to 7.6% from 8%, citing the impact of its own monetary tightening and the weakening growth momentum in the U.S. and the euro zone.

Chief Economic Adviser Kaushik Basu said growth in the October-December quarter would also be weak, although it will pick up in the January-March period. High inflation has weakened demand and prompted the central bank to hike interest rates 13 times, crimping growth as a dour global economy squeezes credit and exports. Policy inertia and corruption scandals have also slowed the flow of crucial investment and helped push the rupee to record lows. While investors have called for economic reforms - such as making land acquisition for industry easier and opening up the retail market to foreign firms - there appear to be few short-term fixes. Europe's sovereign debt crisis has also prompted European banks — which provide some $150 billion, or over 50 percent, of foreign currency loans to Indian companies— to pull back, making it harder to fund expansion.

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According to a report by Groupe Speciale Mobile Association, Africa is the world's fastest growing mobile phone market with the number of subscribers growing 20% per year for the last five years: Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners Report.

Edinburgh, Scotland -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/02/2011 -- Mobile phone service is gaining by leaps and bounds in Africa. So many Africans have subscribed to wireless service that the continent is now the second-largest market in the world - behind only Asia, the top market. According to a report by Groupe Speciale Mobile Association, Africa is the world's fastest growing mobile phone market and is poised to have 735 million people using their phones for everything from transferring money to tracking animals for wildlife studies. The number of subscribers on the continent has grown almost 20% each year for the past five years, reaching 649 million subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2011. Analysts say bad and expensive landline connections in Africa are responsible for the high mobile phone usage. In a report, GSMA says that 96% of subscriptions are pre-paid with voice services currently dominating, although uptake of data services is increasing steadily. The expansion of mobile phones is likely to revolutionize Africa, a land plagued by poverty, disease, wars and political corruption. In the report, GSMA calls on governments to allocate more mobile broadband spectrum, and to cut taxes on operators to further spur expansion.

Africa's natural resources, growing stability and increasing middle class present a significant opportunity for both commercial and societal advancements. The key area of development is indeed commerce and finding sustainable ways for communities to interact and transact with each other in efficient, trusted ways. Africa's mobile operators and banks have been quick to realize that while 60 per cent of Africa's population has no access to banking facilities, over 50 per cent of the adult population in Africa has access to a mobile phone, which makes the move to mobile-banking a natural transition. Broad-based accessibility and availability of banking services at a reasonable cost could have a liberating impact on the majority of the African population, including those sections that do not have access to traditional banking channels. One of the key features driving the growth in mobiles in Africa is the inherent mobility suited to remote areas with poor infrastructure. In addition, the pre-paid system of low-denomination scratch cards is perfectly matched to the economic situation of many Africans, and it is recognized that mobiles offer potentially cheap means of communicating, especially through the use of SMS.

Kenya is at the forefront of mobile money transfers, with 8.5 million users. The Kenyan government's abolition of the 16% general sales tax on mobile handsets in 2009 has resulted in handset purchases increasing by more than 200%. Nigeria has the highest number of mobile phone subscriptions in Africa with more than 93 million, representing 16% of the continent's total mobile subscriptions. South Africa, with its more developed infrastructure, has the highest broadband penetration of 6%, followed by Morocco's 2.8%. The report also found that 36% of people in the 25 largest African mobile markets still have no access to mobile services indicating the massive growth potential of the industry.

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Edinburgh, Scotland -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/23/2011 -- US president Barack Obama has announced the outlines of a plan to create a trans-Pacific free trade zone at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) summit in Hawaii. Obama said the trade zone could serve as a model for the region and for other trade pacts, increasing U.S. exports and helping to create jobs, a top priority in the fastest growing region in the world. Such a free trade area would have 800 million consumers and almost 40 per cent of the world economy and would be largest trading zone in the world, bigger that the European Union, which is responsible for only one quarter of the world's wealth. Much of the work by Obama and other leaders at the summit of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum was aimed at fostering freer trade and closer cooperation to help fend off recession as Europe struggles to resolve its debt crisis. By removing barriers and bottlenecks that slow business, APEC members hope to re-energize growth at a time when the world economy most needs dynamism in the Asia-Pacific region to offset the malaise spreading from crisis-stricken Europe. At the same time they are working toward a broader agreement, countries are continuing to forge separate free-trade deals.

China, the regional economic giant which is set to overtake the United States as the world's largest economy this decade, is reportedly lacking enthusiasm on the pact, however, with officials describing the proposal as "overly ambitious". China's reluctance to endorse such a plan likely reflects its wariness of being drawn into what has become a U.S.-led initiative, even though the current TPP membership includes only Chile, New Zealand, Brunei and Singapore. The U.S., Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Peru are negotiating to join. Chinese President Hu Jintao, in a speech to business leaders on the sidelines of the summit, reiterated China's support for an earlier-proposed APEC-wide free trade zone. On Friday, the country's trade minister, nonetheless, said Beijing would seriously consider joining the TPP if invited.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), by promoting free trade, could spur global economic growth. With Europe moving toward recession, a fast-growing Asia-Pacific region could be an engine for faster global economic growth. Forecasts of the International Monetary Fund have said that Asia is expected to grow 8% next year, about four times faster than the United States. The outline for the free trade pact announced by Obama and other leaders pledges to work toward eliminating tariffs and other barriers to trade and investment, facilitating trade and other business, harmonizing regulatory standards, aiding small and medium-size companies and contributing to development and poverty relief. Japan, the world's third-largest economy, has also signalled that it wants to join the negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and the Obama administration hopes other nations will be wooed as well. In all, 21 APEC countries account for about 44% of global trade and make up some 40% of the world's population.

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The IMF's Director is warning nations to work together and stabilise their economies, as the risk of an entire decade of no growth is apparently increasing, Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners Report.

Edinburgh, Scotland -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/16/2011 -- International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde has warned of the risk of a "lost decade" for the global economy unless nations act together to counter threats to growth. Speaking in China, Ms Lagarde called upon Beijing to rebalance its economy. Lagarde said the ongoing debt crisis in Europe has resulted in an uncertain outlook for the global economy. The IMF chief added that whilst efforts to solve the crisis were heading in the right direction, more needed to be done to restore confidence. The comments come amid fears that the debt crisis in some peripheral countries may be spreading to some of the euro area's biggest economies. European leaders are looking to China as a potential source of funds as a sovereign-debt crisis threatens to engulf Italy, the third-biggest economy in the euro area. The "lost decade" reference carries echoes of Japan's experience of persistent deflation, mounting debts and economic impotence through the 1990s and beyond after its real estate bubble burst, an outcome many analysts fear could be repeated given the debt and property origins of Europe's problems. However, there is skepticism in China, where public opinion is firmly against bailing out countries that still enjoy far higher average incomes than Chinese.

Before arriving in Beijing, Ms Lagarde had spent two days in Moscow, trying to convince Russia to chip in some of its petro dollars to boost bailout funds for the euro zone. The so-called BRIC nations, comprising Brazil, Russia, India and China, have so far been reluctant to invest directly in Europe's rescue vehicle, preferring to contribute via the IMF. China and India said that the global economy is in a "critical phase," in a statement after the fifth meeting in a so-called financial dialogue between the two nations, usually held each year. Chinese policy makers also worry that European plans are "not complete and not firm," according to a commentary on China's official Xinhua news agency. It criticized a lack of political will, politicians' concerns over their own re-election and a lack of coordination between EU members. European finance ministers meeting in Brussels yesterday pledged to roll out the bulked-up rescue fund next month after consulting investors and credit-rating companies over two options for translating the fund's 440 billion euros ($607 billion) in guarantees into as much as 1 trillion euros of spending power. Lagarde said she was hopeful that the technical details of European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) plan will be ready by December. While the US and eurozone economies have been struggling with their individual issues, Asian countries led by China have been growing robustly in recent years. However, there is a realisation that in a globalised economy, Asia is not immune from troubles in the rest of the world. The US and the eurozone are the world's two largest economic regions and are the biggest markets for Asian goods. With their economies in turmoil, consumer demand for Asian goods has slowed. In counties where exports are vital, like China and Japan, this could really hurt growth.

About Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners
Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners (http://www.nmcap.com) provides comprehensive wealth management and financial services with the goal of helping clients to maximize the utilization of their financial resources. We take an intensely personal approach in managing our clients' wealth and focus on enabling the achievement of life goals based upon each client's unique situation, individual needs and risk tolerance. With offices in the United Kingdom, Malaysia and Hong Kong, Nichols & Meyer provides international expertise and access to global markets and opportunities.

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Japan's government may spend another 15tn yen ($196bn; €150bn) to stabilise the yen. Manufacturers have now largely overcome post-quake production disruptions including the threat of power shortages and analysts are now focusing on how Japan will cope with the economic turmoil overseas as well as the yen's appreciation. –Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners

Edinburgh, Scotland -- (SBWIRE) --11/15/2011 -- Japan said on Friday it will boost its currency intervention fund and keep watching dealers' trading positions in yet another effort to tame the yen in the face of growing evidence that its strength is stalling the economy's post-quake rebound. The Finance Ministry said it could spend another 15tn yen ($196bn; €150bn) to stabilise the currency, which has risen in value as investors look for safety amid economic uncertainty. Meanwhile, data showed factory output rose by 0.8% in August, less than the expected 1.5%. Worries for the health of the world's third largest economy have increased as exporters face a soaring yen that eats into profits and as demand softens both at home and abroad amid fears of a global slowdown. The government will maintain for two more months monitoring of currency traders' daily positions put in place last month to discourage speculative bets on the yen's rise.

The yen has held broadly steady against the dollar at around 76-77 yen since Tokyo bought a record 4.5 trillion yen worth of currencies on Aug. 4, but the currency continued to rise against the euro and currencies of its Asian rivals. With the yen still within striking distance of its all-time high of 75.94 against the dollar, Tokyo is clearly alarmed that its exporters are ill equipped to cope with such persistent yen strength.

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said on Friday the industrial production has now almost completely recovered from the effects of the earthquake and tsunami, the result was below a median forecast for a 1.5% rise in a survey of economists by Dow Jones Newswires and the Nikkei. In July, production rose 0.4% from the previous month. In a sign there may be a bumpy road ahead for production in the coming months, manufacturers polled by the ministry expect their orders to fall 2.5% in September, and climb 3.8% in October. Manufacturers have now largely overcome post-quake production disruptions and the threat of power shortages due to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear crisis and analysts are now focusing on how Japan will cope with the economic turmoil overseas as well as the yen's appreciation. Japan's unemployment rate fell to 4.3% in August from 4.7% in July, improving for the first time in three months. An official briefing reports on the data noted that the drop in the figure does not necessarily mean an improvement in the labour market. Meanwhile, the nation's core consumer price index rose for the second-straight month in August, partly due to an increase in energy prices.

The nation's core CPI rose 0.2% from a year earlier in the month, data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication showed, higher than the median forecast for a 0.1% gain in a poll of economists surveyed by Dow Jones and the Nikkei. The week's data has led some analysts to question the strength of Japan's post-earthquake recovery. Analysts say the latest data illustrate the fragile state of Japan's economy and will spur opposition to the government's plan to raise taxes to help fund reconstruction from the March 11 disasters.

About Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners
Nichols & Meyer Capital Partners (http://www.nmcap.com) provides comprehensive wealth management and financial services with the goal of helping clients to maximize the utilization of their financial resources. We take an intensely personal approach in managing our clients' wealth and focus on enabling the achievement of life goals based upon each client's unique situation, individual needs and risk tolerance.

With offices in the United Kingdom, Malaysia and Hong Kong, Nichols & Meyer provides international expertise and access to global markets and opportunities.

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.releasewire.com/press-releases/release-3.htm

Oil companies around the world are posting huge surges in third-quarter profits - the results of the fall in supply and the rise of prices.

Edinburgh, Scotland -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/04/2011 -- Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell and BP reported a surge in quarterly profits this week even though they're producing less oil from fields around the world, including a combined 7 percent decline in the third quarter that just ended. Each company has devoted billions of dollars to finding new petroleum deposits, but it could be years, even decades, before those investments translate to more oil and natural gas. All major oil and gas companies have benefited from higher oil price; Chevron and Total have also reported sharp rises in third quarter profit.

The rise in oil prices over the last year has spurred the drilling activity, but it may be difficult for oil companies to sustain the earnings momentum since they will face stiffer earnings comparisons in the fourth quarter and into 2012. Also, natural gas prices have been weakening. Oil prices began a steady climb at the end of last year because of expectations that the global economy was recovering and sudden fears of supply shortages as political turmoil began spreading across North Africa and the Middle East. Oil and natural-gas production fell 3.8 percent to the equivalent of 4.28 million barrels of crude a day, the largest decline since the third quarter of 2008, according to Bloomberg data.

Exxon's third-quarter profits are $10.33 billion, a 41% increase, the second-largest among major international oil companies that have announced third-quarter results. Only Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the world's third-largest energy company by market value behind Exxon and PetroChina Co., boasted a larger jump, by doubling net income to $7 billion. The last time Exxon's profits exceeded $10 billion for three consecutive periods was 2008, when Brent oil touched an all-time record of $147.50 a barrel and the company reaped $45.22 billion in full-year net income. So far this year, Exxon shares have risen 12 percent, poised for the best annual performance since 2007.

Big Oil's third-quarter financial results highlight a growing problem within the industry. New petroleum sources are increasingly tough and expensive to locate. The best new deposits are found more than a mile under the ocean, in vast layers of sticky Canadian sand or in the frigid Arctic. Many energy experts say oil prices can remain at current high levels, but only if Europe averts a financial collapse, the United States avoids another recession and China, India and other developing countries continue to grow strongly. A survey released this week showed that demand for gasoline in the United States declined by 2.8 percent for the week ending Oct. 21, compared with a year ago. Demand in Europe has also eased, although it has been more resilient in developing countries. Experts say smaller companies will need to step up to satisfy growing world demand. China, India and other developing nations are expected to push the global appetite for oil to a record 90 million barrels per day next year, enough to outstrip supplies.

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