A roundup of news in finance, economics and business:
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
PARIS – The United States lacks a credible medium-term plan to reduce budget deficits, the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund told Le Monde newspaper.
WASHINGTON – There was a glimmer of hope for the troubled US housing market, with the National Association of Realtors reporting sales of previously owned homes rose in March.
PARIS – Most countries committed to an anti-corruption standard did not take action against any companies or people last year, the OECD complained, saying it is time they got serious.
TOKYO – Japan’s exports fell for the first time in 16 months and its trade surplus plunged after a record earthquake and tsunami hit production, the finance ministry said.
LONDON – British banks could be forced to pay customers billions of pounds in compensation after losing a legal challenge over the sale of loan insurance.
NEW YORK – More than 3200 oil and gas wells classified as active lie abandoned beneath the Gulf of Mexico, with no cement plugging to help prevent leaks that could threaten the same waters fouled by last year’s BP spill, The Associated Press has learned.
BEIJING – Opaque bidding laws, outright favouritism and other practices by China effectively bar foreign companies from winning public procurement contracts, a market equal to a fifth of the Chinese economy, a European business group said.
SAN FRANCISCO – Intel Corp has sent a strong message to Wall Street: Tablets may be transforming the computer industry but there’s still a lot of money left to be made in the huge market for traditional PCs.
HONG KONG – Asian shares rose as traders were buoyed by gains on Wall Street while also picking up undervalued stocks following the previous day’s heavy losses.
NEW YORK/LONDON – Copper rose to its highest in a week after the US housing market showed more signs of revival, strong earnings boosted US equities and the dollar hit a 15-month low against the euro.
LONDON – European stock markets closed sharply higher as strong quarterly company results restored faith in the prospects for growth and offset continuing concerns over US and eurozone debt.
LOCAL NEWS
CANBERRA – Recent natural disasters will crimp government revenue in the near term, while the kick from the renascent mining boom will boost the coffers but not as much as the last mining surge, Treasurer Wayne Swan says.
MELBOURNE – Discount airline Tiger Airways faces being grounded by the aviation regulator following a series of serious safety and maintenance breaches.