http://www.ft.com/marketshttp://www.ft.com/rss/marketsFT.com - Financial Markets Newsen© Copyright The Financial Times Ltd 2008. "FT" and "Financial Times" are trademarks of the Financial Times.support@ft.comThu, 15 May 2008 21:44 BSTThu, 15 May 2008 21:44:57 BSTNewspapers60http://news.ft.com/cms/d1f3ce1a-6bbe-11da-bb53-0000779e2340.gifhttp://www.ft.com/markets(PICS-1.1 "http://www.classify.org/safesurf/" L gen true for "http://www.ft.com/" r (SS~~000 1))http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2be172b4-229d-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2be172b4-229d-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlGovernment bonds in the US and eurozone moved in opposite directions on Thursday as a flurry of data releases on both sides of the Atlantic painted contrasting pictures of economic activity.Thu, 15 May 2008 17:43 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/18c9fa20-2275-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/18c9fa20-2275-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlUS stocks extended recent gains as investors shrugged off new data giving mixed signals about the health of the US economy while strong performances in the information technology sector bolstered the leading indicesThu, 15 May 2008 21:44 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/37d69b60-2245-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/37d69b60-2245-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlThe oil exploration group closes at a record high on Thursday after UBS puts a £45 target price on group. The surge helped the London market add 0.6 per centThu, 15 May 2008 20:43 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/92ba2908-2299-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/92ba2908-2299-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlLiffe, the international derivatives exchange, is launching new money market products amid growing concerns over the London Interbank Offered Rate as a reference for future interest ratesThu, 15 May 2008 17:18 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9bb7d90e-229b-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9bb7d90e-229b-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlCountries that import natural resources, led by China and India, face further inflationary pressures after the cost of shipping basic commodities surged to its highest ever levelThu, 15 May 2008 17:32 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3b00558a-225c-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3b00558a-225c-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlThe benchmark FTSE Eurofirst 300 edged up 0.4 per cent at 1,359.86 on Thursday as a string of robust results from such groups as Vivendi, cancelled out bad news from the financial sectorThu, 15 May 2008 20:54 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e0a2b820-2261-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e0a2b820-2261-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlThe New Zealand dollar dropped sharply to a four-month low against the dollar on Thursday after a slump in retail sales added to recent evidence that the country's economy was slowing rapidly. Thu, 15 May 2008 16:35 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d3dd4050-226c-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d3dd4050-226c-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlAluminium prices on Thursday rose back above the key $3,000-a-tonne level as investors bet that China's power shortages could be aggravated by damage to dams and the grid by the recent earthquake, leading to lower suppliesThu, 15 May 2008 20:32 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9967d3d0-2295-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9967d3d0-2295-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.html The South Korean government plans to lend shares in state-run companies such as Industrial Bank of Korea, Korea Gas Corp and Korea Electric Power Corp to investors to boost returns from its stockholdings Thu, 15 May 2008 17:02 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7f74744e-2293-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7f74744e-2293-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.html Adaro Energy, the holding company for Indonesia's second-largest coal miner, increased its planned public offering, making it likely to be the largest IPO in the country's history Thu, 15 May 2008 16:34 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cc70b526-223b-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/cc70b526-223b-11dd-93a9-000077b07658.htmlAsia-Pacific equity markets closed mostly higher on Thursday led by Japan, as Sony's better-than-expected outlook and substantial dividend hike bolstered the Nikkei and TopixThu, 15 May 2008 10:11 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6d19eebe-21e4-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6d19eebe-21e4-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlUS bond yields rose towards their highest levels since the start of the year before the sell-off was stemmed with the release of a stable April consumer inflation reportWed, 14 May 2008 21:15 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/737259a4-21e4-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/737259a4-21e4-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlFinancial Security Assurance, the bond insurer, which has avoided many of the mortgage-related losses plaguing rivals such as Ambac and MBIA, said the volatility in the credit default swaps market had made it reluctant to write new contractsWed, 14 May 2008 21:42 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a210de62-21de-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/a210de62-21de-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlInterest rates in dollar money markets rose sharply amid speculation over changes to the calculation of Libor, the benchmark for global borrowing costsWed, 14 May 2008 22:05 BSThttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7dca1496-21df-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlhttp://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7dca1496-21df-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.htmlThe UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation price index, considered the best measure of global food inflation, saw its first decline in 15 months in April Wed, 14 May 2008 23:30 BST