GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Wall Street was boosted Tuesday 1 May on better than expected US manufacturing reports, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a four-year high.
The Dow closed the first day of May, historically known as a “sell” month, at 13,279.40, up 0.5 percent from Monday’s closing, reaching its highest level since December 2007.
Concerns over a possible slowdown in US economic recovery and renewed worries about the European debt crisis were countered by the release of a report on US domestic manufacturing for April, showing the highest growth since June 2011.
Other US indices were also up on Tuesday’closing, with the S&P rising 0.6 percent to 1,405.82 just shy of its 2012 peak, and NASDAQ up 0.1 percent to 3,050.44.
Links to other sources: CNN, Wall Street Journal, Reuters
Official data released 31 January shows 16% rebound
Japanese manufacturing began to recover in 2010, figures released by the government 31 January show, with industrial production up 15.9 percent for the year, after a nearly 22 percent drop in 2009. Automobiles, electronics and steel manufacturing led the rebound. It was not enough to cheer up the Tokyo stock market Monday, however, where shares fell over continuing worries about instability in the Middle East, as protests in Egypt carry on.
Photo: Seco
Basel / Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Swiss economy remains relatively steady, but with Credit Suisse’s Swiss manufacturing index dropping slightly and the forecast for tourism showing lower but stable figures in coming months. The manufacturing figures “still [show] however that the Alpine economy is leaving the deep recession behind,” reports news agency Reuters. The tourism forecast is gloomier and follows publication of figures by BakBasel, an economic research institute, showing that tourism from November 2008 to October 2009 was the second lowest since the end of the second world war: only 1995 was lower.
Japanese industrial output rose for the seventh consecutive month, by 1.4 percent, raising hopes that the governement’s economic stimulus was bearing fruit, according to figures released by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Inventories dropped to their lowest levels in 21 years. Predictions were good for continued strong growth in manufacturing in October and November, as well.
The output gains were led by auto manufacturers and makers of technology. Industrial output is still down 18.9 percent compared to a year ago, but the Bank of Japan has been mulling whether to draw down the economic support it has given to financial firms to rescue the economyafter the financial meltdown following the collapse of Lehman Brothers late 2008. Reuters, Xinhua
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Thomas Vollmann, 72, who taught manufacturing management at busines school IMD in Lausanne, has died, in Lausanne. He became a professor emeritus in 2001 but continued to be active in research and in 2008 co-authored the book The Power of Two with fellow professor Carlos Cordon.
