October homebuilder sentiment highest since May 2010


Readings below 50 mean more builders view market conditions as poor than favorable. The index has not been above 50 since April 2006.”This latest boost in builder confidence is a good sign that some pockets of recovery are starting to emerge across the country, as extremely favorable interest rates and prices catch consumers’ attention,” NAHB chief economist David Crowe said in a statement.Even so, builders are being squeezed by rising materials costs and low home prices due to the glut of foreclosed homes, Crowe said.A gauge of single family home sales rose to 18 from 14, which was also the highest level since May 2010. The gauge of sales expectations in the next six months climbed to 24 from 17, the highest since March.

UPDATE 1-India’s Petronet eyes 12-14 LNG spot cargoes in Sept-Dec


In the September quarter, the gas importer regassified 42 cargoes, of which 12 were spot cargoes.”We hope to maintain the trend of the previous quarter. Spot LNG cargoes should be 12 to 14,” he said.Petronet, which operates a 10 million-tonne-a-year LNG regassification plant at Dahej in western Gujarat state, plans to raise it to 15 million tonnes a year by end-2015.It plans to invest 30 billion Indian rupees ($612.8 million) and commission a 5-million-tonne per year Kochi LNG terminal in southern India in the last quarter of the next calendar year.Besides, the gas importer is considering building a new terminal of about 5 million tonnes a year on the east coast, Balyan said.Petronet currently gets 7.5 million tonnes of LNG per year from Qatar for Dahej and has a deal with Australia’s Gorgon project for 1.5 million tonnes per year of LNG supplies from 2014 for its Kochi plant.Earlier this year, it signed an initial pact with Russia’s Gazprom to buy 2.5 million tonnes LNG annually.Balyan also said Petronet is in talks to buy ‘minority’ stakes in LNG projects in Australia as it seeks to secure supplies for expanding capacities.Petronet sells LNG to state-run firms Indian Oil Corp (IOC) , Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL) and GAIL (India) Ltd , which then supply to industrial users.($1 = 48.955 Indian rupees)

Samsung to unveil new Android model October 19 after delay


“We are unpacking our new Android phone in concurrence with Google,” Samsung said in a statement on Friday, without disclosing the name of the new gadget.Apple and Samsung are engaged in a bruising legal battle that includes more than 20 cases in 10 countries as the two jostle for the top spot in the smartphone and tablet markets. Apple is also the biggest customer of Samsung, buying mainly chips and displays.Apple’s new iPhone 4S finally went on sale in stores around the globe on Friday, with fans snapping up the final gadget unveiled during Jobs’ lifetime.A U.S. judge said on Thursday Samsung’s Galaxy tablets infringe Apple iPad patents, but also that Apple has a problem establishing the validity of its patents.

TEXT-S&P:JFM’s domestic bonds rated ‘AA-‘


The ratings on JFM reflect the organization’s key policy role and its very strong link with the central government of Japan’s (AA-/Negative/A-1+) local and regional government (LRG) sector. Standard & Poor’s believes there is a “very high” likelihood of extraordinary support from the government of Japan in the event of financial distress.We assess JFM’s stand-alone credit profile (SACP, which excludes potential extraordinary government support) to be ‘a+’. Its loan asset quality is very strong, with no nonperforming loans (NPLs) despite 100% concentration in one sector: all loans are made to Japanese LRGs and their related entities with LRG guarantees. In addition, there have been no credit defaults on JFM loans since the inception of its predecessor entity in 1957. Although Standard & Poor’s recognizes the heavy indebtedness of Japan’s LRGs as a constraining factor, the status of JFM as a preferred creditor to LRGs helps maintain its 0% default rate.RELATED CRITERIA AND RESEARCHPrinciples Of Credit Ratings, Feb. 16, 2011Rating Government-Related Entities: Methodology And Assumptions, Dec. 9, 2010

GLOBAL MARKETS-Asia shares fall after Alcoa, Slovak move caps euro


* US earnings eyed for growth impact from euro debt crisisBy Chikako MogiTOKYO, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Asian shares fell on Wednesday on signs that Europe’s debt crisis has hurt confidence in the global economy and is starting to weigh on corporate earnings, while the Slovak parliament’s rejection of a plan to expand the euro zone rescue fund added to uncertainty.Slovakia is the only euro zone country yet to approve a plan to boost the funds available to the bailout vehicle, which is seen as crucial to containing Europe’s debt crisis, and a re-vote was expected later this week.While the main opposition party was set to support the measure now the government has resigned, the twist has added to market nervousness just as European authorities were striving to come up with concrete steps to avoid a systemic contagion.MSCI’s broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.4 percent, while Japan’s Nikkei average opened down 0.6 percent.Global stocks, as measured by MSCI’s All-Country World index , gained 0.4 percent on Tuesday, but eased after New York close as Alcoa Inc , the largest U.S. aluminium producer, said slowing economic growth knocked prices for the metal lower, denting its third-quarter profit and sending its shares down in after-hours trading.”Alcoa wasn’t all that bad, so we won’t see an ‘Alcoa shock’ today, but investors took it as bad news that the company clearly felt the impact of slowing growth,” said Kenichi Hirano, operating officer at Tachibana Securities in Tokyo.”Those who were looking for reassurance about the U.S. earnings season didn’t find it,” he said.The euro’s recent rally stalled after the Slovak vote, and was trading down around 0.1 percent on Wednesday at $1.3620.Oil prices fell, with Brent crude futures down 0.4 percent and U.S. crude futures down 0.9 percent.Market sentiment had improved this week, after a weekend pledge by German and French leaders to come up with a plan to tackle the debt crisis. In Asia, China stepped in to shore up banking shares.European officials continued to seek ways to restore the region’s banking sector after the banks’ weakening financial strength due to sovereign debt problems prompted a fresh round of credit rating downgrades.Banking and regulatory sources said on Tuesday that Europe’s banks would have to achieve a significantly stronger capital position under a quick-fire regulatory health check and may need to raise some 100 billion euros ($137 billion).Jose Manuel Barroso, president of the European Union’s executive European Commission, said he would propose a bank recapitalisation plan on Wednesday, even though there is no agreement yet on where the money will come from.Rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings downgraded Spanish and Italian banks on Tuesday, underscoring concerns about the impact of the escalating debt crisis on the sector.Investors eyed developments on the euro zone debt crisis ahead of an EU summit on Oct. 23, as well as minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting due later on Wednesday For clues on the state of the U.S. economy.

Decision on Saab’s fate could be hours away -report


Saab has run out of cash and for the restructuring process to proceed it needs to be able to pay wages after a state salary insurance scheme runs out on Oct. 21.Should the administrator call an end to the restructuring process, the court would likely declare the company bankrupt.Neither Saab nor the administrator could immediately be reached for comment.Saab-owner Swedish Automobile has struggled for months to stave off collapse, seeking new investors and selling off various assets so that it could pay suppliers and employees and resume production at its Saab plant in Sweden.Saab had hoped protection from creditors would allow it to survive until China’s authorities approve a 245 million euro ($336 million) investment by car firms Zhejiang Youngman Lotus Automobile and Pangda .A decision by China’s NDRC could come as early as Friday.The paper also quoted Swedish Debt Office spokesman Daniel Barr rejecting media reports the government could pay off Saab’s debt to the European Investment Bank and convert the security on the loan to shares in Saab.”No, the Debt Office does not have any such mandate,” he said. ($1 = 0.732 Euros)

Former heavyweight champion Haye poised to retire


“I can confirm that Mr. Haye is not renewing his professional boxer’s license,” Board general secretary Robert Smith told Reuters.The retirement plans were questioned by the Klitschko camp with promoter Bernd Boente saying Haye’s manager Adam Booth had told him “five minutes ago” the Briton would return to the ring if there was a fight against either of the Klitschko brothers.”The option is still there. It really depends only on the business case,” he told Sky Sports News. “We are in constant contact, we are still awaiting some numbers from British TV and then we’ll see if the business case is realistic.”He said Vladimir’s older brother Vitali, the WBC world heavyweight champion, was the most likely opponent and that if a fight was to take place it would be in February or March.”A rematch (with Vladimir) makes no sense because there are no questions after the first fight, you can only promote a fight if there is a thrill,” Boente said.”Against Vitali it’s a different thing, Vitali has a totally different style. Vitali said after the fight he wanted to finish what his brother didn’t do, meaning knock out David Haye.”Haye, whose trash-talking before the July fight angered both Klitschkos, blamed the defeat on a broken toe and had suggested he would be prepared to postpone retirement if the Ukrainian agreed to a swift rematch.That defeat was Haye’s first in seven years and left his record at 25-2. Before joining the heavyweight division, Haye was the unified cruiserweight champion.Haye’s representatives were not immediately available for comment but local media reported the Briton was planning a news conference for Thursday.The Klitschkos hold all the major championship belts in the division. The brothers have said they would not fight each other.