Strong earthquake strikes Mexico

20 March 2012 Last updated at 21:32 GMT A large earthquake has struck near Acapulco on Mexico's Pacific coast

A large earthquake has struck near Acapulco on Mexico's Pacific coast.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake had a magnitude of 7.4 and put the epicentre at 15 miles (25km) east of Ometepec, in Guerrero state.

Witnesses in the capital, Mexico City, said the tremor sent office workers rushing out onto the streets.

Some 500 houses were damaged in Guerrero state, according to the state's governor, local TV reported.

Angel Aguirre told Milenio television that so far there were no casualties in Guerrero state or neaby Oaxaca state, adding that authorities were checking schools and public buildings near Ometepec.

The director of the country's seismological service, Carlos Valdes Gonzalez, said that there had already been some six aftershocks and further ones could be expected in the next 24 hours.

He said one of the aftershocks had already registered a magnitude of 5.3.

The BBC's Will Grant, in Mexico City, says buildings swayed for at least a minute in the capital.

A pedestrian bridge reportedly collapsed and crushed a microbus in Mexico City, but there were still no reports of deaths.

Office workers and residents were sent running into the streets in wealthy districts and poor neighbourhoods alike, he reports.

Thundering walls

Samantha Rodriguez, a 37-year old environmental consultant, was evacuated from the 11th floor of an office block.

"I thought it was going to pass rapidly but the walls began to thunder and we decided to get out," she said.

In the capital, Mexico City, some children were evacuated from their schools

Sirens could be heard across the city, and police helicopters are crisscrossing the skies.

"I swear I never felt one so strong, I thought the building was going to collapse," said Sebastian Herrera, 42, a businessman from a neighbourhood hit hard in Mexico's devastating 1985 earthquake, which killed thousands.

Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard's Twitter account said the water system and other "strategic services" were not experiencing problems and no damage was reported in the central or northern areas of the city.

Mobile phone networks have been affected, our correspondent says, and people have had trouble contacting their loved ones.

Gabino Cue, the governor of Oaxaca state, next to Guerrero state, said via Twitter that the quake had caused cracks in school buildings and damaged roofs in one part of the state.

The USGS said the epicentre was 11 miles (18km) underground.

The US president's daughter, 13-year-old Malia Obama, was on a school trip in Oaxaca, south-western Mexico. A White House official said she was safe and had never been in danger.

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HIM Quick Poll: After Strong January, Advisors Turn Decidedly Optimistic For 2012

Heritage Investment Management predict a brighter 2012, after a company poll of financial advisor's.

PRLog (Press Release) - Mar 18, 2012 -
Heritage Investment Management (HIM) Hong Kong based firm specializing in finance, taxation and investment management to the global market has announced that after a strong start for the stock market in January, financial advisors have turned decidedly more optimistic on the market’s performance for 2012, according to an HIM Quick Poll released today. Nearly all advisors surveyed (89 percent) in early February said they expect a positive return on the markets 2012; an 19 percent increase compared to a similar survey conducted in mid-January. Even more dramatic was a 51 percent increase among those who predict gains of greater than five percent. The February survey was completed by more than 100 advisors, the majority of whom manage more than $15 million in assets.
HIM’s CEO Ms. Vera Lim stated “Investors and advisors, alike, have been waiting for an excuse to become more positive,” “Whether it’s the trend in unemployment numbers, positive corporate profits, or lack of bad news, the investing sentiment has shifted to a more optimistic attitude. While we aren’t out of the woods yet, it’s important for advisors, and investors, to recognize we are in the early stages of a changeover and position their portfolios accordingly. With that said, there are still global risks including Greece, Syria, Iran, and Europe, that could tilt sentiment negative again.”
Heritage Investment Management also stated that In addition to positive projections for the S&P 500, the survey found other points of growing optimism among advisors. More than one-quarter of advisors predict that the ‘Pessimism Bubble’ hovering over the economy will burst in 2012. Additionally, nearly one-third of advisors say investor sentiment can best be described by the phrase, “the tide is turning.” Lastly, a majority of advisors said that investing adages, “Bull markets climb walls of worry,” and “A rising tide lifts all boats,” are the two most accurate phrases for today. Most advisors (87 percent) say that the likelihood of the payroll tax cuts being extended beyond February have a 50/50 chance, or better.

About Heritage Investment Management (HIM):

http://www.heritageinvestmentmanagement.com

Heritage Investment Management was founded in 1989 by a highly experienced team of specialists in finance, taxation and investment management. From our offices in Hong Kong, we combine expertise in investment banking, institutional trading, tax minimization, estate planning, and wealth management for clients in 26 countries around the globe.
Heritage Investment Management was founded with the aim of delivering exceptional results in every aspect of our work. Our team is continually striving to exceed expectations, outperform our competitors and excel at what we do. At Heritage Investment Management, we understand that originality is our primary strategic advantage, and we are engaged in the continual process of formulating and executing pioneering solutions to our clients’ diverse requirements.
At Heritage Investment Management, we consider integrity to be the foundation upon which our strong and durable relationships with clients are assembled. This belief extends into every communication we have our clients, the companies we invest in, industry partners, and other actors in the market.
Heritage Investment Management works as a single, cohesive team, working in partnership to determine and realize the optimum outcome for our institutional and private clients worldwide. Our team knows the meaning of collective responsibility and corporate accountability, which leads us to continually identify and pursue solutions which will maximize the benefit to our clients by generating the exceptional growth in a low risk and tax efficient manner.

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Rents 'increase on strong demand'

19 August 2011 Last updated at 10:04 GMT Rents are being driven higher by tenants whose home-owning ambitions have been thwarted Private rents in England and Wales rose to an average £705 per month in July, according to a survey by LSL Property Services, a firm of letting agents.

The increase of 0.6% last month was the sixth monthly increase in a row.

LSL said the continued rise meant average rents were now £29 a month higher than a year ago.

Rents have risen fastest in London, where they are now 7.1% higher than a year ago, at an average of £1,009 per month.

"Rents are on an upward trajectory, and it is unlikely that tenants will gain respite any time soon," said David Newnes, of LSL.

"Demand from thousands of frustrated buyers each month is underpinning buoyant competition for rental homes, enabling landlords to increase prices."

Bank of mum and dad

Mr Newnes said the phenomenon of parents providing a deposit for their adult children to buy a home was now spreading to the deposits required by landlords.

"As rents climbs, so does the size of the average deposit a new renter must find," he said.

"Thousands of new buyers each year rely on the bank of mum and dad to help fund a deposit.

"However, now it is becoming increasingly commonplace for renters to get parental help to fund their first deposit on a rental home, with the typical one-month deposit on a property in London more than £1,000."

Jonathan Moore, of Easyroommate, said tenants were caught in a vicious circle.

"First-time buyers cannot get mortgages, so demand for rented homes soars," he said.

"Rents shoot up, tenants find it even harder to save a deposit to buy, and rental demand strengthens further."

The rental website Citylets reported recently that in Scotland, average private rents had reached £663 a month in the second quarter of the year.

This was the highest level it had recorded since the third quarter of 2008 and was partly due to demand being boosted by people who could not buy a home instead.

House prices

The latest UK house price forecast is unlikely to cheer those looking to get on the property ladder.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) said that it expected the price of the average home to fall in 2011, but then rise at an accelerating pace in the following years.

It predicted that a shortage of homes would push prices up by 2.4% in 2012, rising to a 4% increase in 2015.

"We forecast an average of 110,000 new homes to be built every year over the medium term," said CEBR economist Shehan Mohamed.

"This is significantly lower than the 225,000 homes that need to be created every year to keep pace with current housing needs, population growth and the trend towards reduced household sizes."

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Strong sales at Airbus owner EADS

29 July 2011 Last updated at 06:46 GMT Airbus said there had been strong demand in the commercial aviation sector European aerospace giant EADS has reported first-half sales ahead of expectations, amid strong demand for its Airbus aircraft.

Sales rose 8% to 21.9bn euros ($31.3bn; £19.2bn), while it took orders worth 58.1bn euros in the period.

EADS said orders at the recent Paris Air Show had been "record-breaking".

However, net profit fell 41% on the first half of 2010 to 109m euros after the company faced higher financial charges at the beginning of the year.

And it said the weakening US dollar and British pound were offsetting higher sales.

"Deliveries remained at a high level, with 258 aircraft at Airbus Commercial, 205 helicopters at Eurocopter and the 44th consecutive successful Ariane 5 launch," EADS said.

'Continuing momentum'

Last month, American Airlines placed what it called "the largest aircraft order in history".

It ordered 260 Airbus A320 aircraft, as well as 200 Boeing 737s.

"Our results for the first half of 2011 mirror the strong demand in the commercial aviation sector," said EADS chief executive Louis Gallois.

"In terms of orders, Paris Air Show was record-breaking for us, particularly thanks to the A320neo.

"The recent historic order by American Airlines adds to this remarkable success story as the strong commercial momentum continues beyond Le Bourget."

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VIDEO: Swiss tourism hit by strong franc

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Samsung profit outlook weakens on chips, mobiles strong

By Miyoung Kim

SEOUL | Fri Jul 29, 2011 12:17am EDT

SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co is relying on the smartphone market to boost group profits after its flat screen unit reported a second quarter of losses and the mainstay chip business struggled.

The South Korean technology conglomerate joins a host of global companies in warning that fragile consumer demand is hurting sales of TVs, flat screens, computers and semiconductors.

"Samsung's earnings momentum will revive in Q3, but the recovery will not be strong because of weak economies in the U.S. and Europe," said Lee Dong-Jin, fund manager at KTB Asset Management." There are also no new IT applications that can drive demand as Apple's iPhone and iPad did."

Samsung, which reported operating profit fell 25-percent from a record, warned of a challenging business outlook. Falling chip prices are the biggest concern for the South Korean company as it earned half of its profit from semiconductors in the second quarter.

On Thursday, Sony Corp and Panasonic Corp also warned of weak TV sales, especially in the United States and Europe, following Philips and Corning Inc in highlighting anemic demand.

Samsung is however betting big on its mobile phone business as it rolls out new versions of tablets and phones, helping it capture market share from Research in Motion and Nokia.

Samsung's shares, which hit a record high in late January, have lost 12 percent so far this year, while the broader KOSPI has gained 5 percent.

The company boasts a market capitalization of $134 billion, bigger than the combined value of Sony, Nokia, Toshiba Corp, Panasonic and LG Display.

Samsung, also the world's No.2 maker of mobile phones, reported a 3.75 trillion won ($3.6 billion) operating profit for April-June, versus the consensus forecast for a 3.7 trillion won profit according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The result was broadly in line with Samsung's estimate earlier this month for an operating profit of between 3.5 trillion won and 3.9 trillion won.

Its operating profit compares with 2.95 trillion won in the preceding quarter and a record 5.01 trillion won a year ago.

Samsung's display business reported a second consecutive quarterly operating loss of 210 billion won, little changed from 230 billion won loss in the previous quarter.

"It will be difficult to boost earnings sharply in the third quarter as demand for memory chips and TVs will continue to remain depressed," said Song Myung-sup, an analyst at HI Investment & Securities. "Its loss-making flat-screen business will also report break even at best."

The operation vies for the top position with local rival LG Display. Each company has about one-quarter of the global market, which is grappling with oversupply and weak demand.

TELECOMS DIVISION GAINS

Operating profit from its telecoms division more than doubled to 1.67 trillion won from 630 billion won a year ago, helped by strong sales of a new version of its flagship smartphone Galaxy S.

Sales of the Galaxy S II have topped 5 million units since its launch in late April.

Samsung did not provide sales number of its handsets but said shipment rose by high single digit percent from the previous quarter's 70 million units.

The company is widely expected to close the gap with top-ranked Nokia, which sold 88.5 million handsets in the second quarter and may have overtaken the Finish firm and Apple to become the world's top smartphone maker, analysts said.

Operating profit from semiconductor business fell 11 percent to 1.79 trillion won and Samsung warned of weak shipment growth in the third quarter on a grim outlook for PC sales.

Contract prices of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips tumbled 16 percent in July alone, according to price tracker DRAMeXchange and analysts expect prices will fall further until August.

Despite its worsening business outlook, Samsung promised to increase its semiconductors investment, which it had forecast at around 10.3 trillion won, to widen the technology gap with smaller rivals.

(Additional reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner and Anshuman Daga)

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