Meltdown 101: Some signs of strength in US exports

The trade deficit might have widened in September, but try telling that to U.S. jewelry makers, loggers and machine manufacturers who have customers in other countries.
U.S exports rose in September, making steady gains across economic sectors. That strength was hidden by a surge in oil imports, which helped widen the trade deficit for the month. Still, exports jumped 2.9 percent to $132 billion in September as factories sold more goods overseas.
That figure remains well below the all-time high of $164.4 billion set in July 2008. But there was unmistakable improvement during the month. And it might not just be a flash in the pan. If the value of the dollar continues to sink, it could make U.S. goods even more affordable overseas and increase demand.
Some sectors of the economy fared better than others -- with exports of jewelry, machinery and precious metals standing out -- but the improvement was evident across the board. Consumer goods, capital goods like factory equipment and automobiles all rose.
One exception was farm products, with exports of corn, soybeans and other foods falling steeply during the month.
Here's a look at items being shipped overseas, by the numbers.
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BIG TICKET ITEMS
17 percent: September increase in industrial machinery exports, worth $2.8 billion.
3.2 percent: Jump in laboratory testing equipment exports, worth $729 million.
14 percent: Jump in generator exports, worth $860 million.
15 percent: Jump in textile and sewing machine exports, worth $93 million.
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EXPORTING THE FINER THINGS
63 percent: Jump in jewelry exports, worth $715 million.
21 percent: Jump in art, antique and stamp exports, worth $434 million.
23 percent: Jump in glass and chinaware exports, worth $38 million.
2.5 percent: Jump in musical instrument exports, worth $161 million.
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COMPUTER DROP
2.3 percent: Drop in computer exports, worth $989 million.
1.5 percent: Drop in semiconductor exports, worth $3.18 billion.
6 percent: Drop in telecommunications equipment exports, worth $2.3 billion.
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AROUND THE HOUSE
2 percent: Jump in household appliance exports, worth $516 million.
9 percent: Jump in TV, VCR and similar equipment exports, worth $348 million.
7 percent: Jump in rug exports, worth $73 million.
3 percent: Jump in book and printed material exports, worth $449 million.
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DOWN ON THE FARM
32 percent: Decrease in soybean exports, worth $952 million.
13 percent: Decrease in nut exports, worth $292 million.
15 percent: Decrease in rice exports, worth $140 million.
1 percent: Decrease in corn exports, worth $975 million.
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HOT COMMODITIES
30 percent: Jump in precious metals exports, worth $759 million.
30 percent: Jump in copper exports, worth $426 million.
6 percent: Jump in pulpwood and wood pulp exports, worth $634 million.

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Malaysia Central Bank Chief: Forex Volatility Hasn't Been Excessive

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)--The foreign-exchange market in Malaysia hasn't seen excessive volatility, and trading conditions have been orderly, the country's central bank chief said Saturday.

 

Disney, Abercrombie fuel a rally

Yes, the stock market has been fading, but the major indexes were holding on to some decent gains this afternoon thanks to bullish earnings from Walt Disney (DIS) and retailers J.C. Penney (JCP) and Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF).
Oh, and did we mention the dollar?
Yessirree, it's one of those days where the dollar is lower, and gold, grain and other commodity prices are higher, oil being a notable exception. So are most commodity stocks -- and so is the overall stock market.

 

US, China debate final APEC wording on forex, trade

SINGAPORE, Nov 15 (Reuters) - The United States and China are debating the final wording on market-oriented currency exchange rates and combating trade protectionism that was included in a draft APEC leaders' statement, an APEC delegation official said on Sunday. Chinese President Hu Jintao has been under pressure to let the yuan currency appreciate, but in a speech at an APEC business summit on Friday he ignored the currency issue and focused on trade and investment protectionism. (Reporting by APEC newsroom; Editing by Neil Chatterjee)

 

APEC Heads Disagree on Currencies

SINGAPORE -- Pacific Rim government leaders vowed Sunday to continue economic stimulus policies until recovery is assured, but they failed to agree on a reference to currencies, a major headache for Asian economies.
"We resolved that we would aim to overcome the crisis within 18 months," the heads of the 21 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum governments said in a statement ending their annual summit in Singapore.
"Economic recovery is not yet on a solid footing," they said. "We will maintain our economic-stimulus policies until a durable economic recovery has clearly taken hold."
In the meeting, presidents and prime ministers of APEC's exporting countries made "efforts until the last moment to include a commitment by the leaders on efforts to stabilize forex markets," said a person who was in the meeting.
"But the Americans and the Chinese disagreed," this person, a top adviser to an APEC head of government, told Dow Jones Newswires. "They showed no willingness to commit to more balanced FX trading."
Asia's export-dependent economies are suffering from the decline of the dollar and of the Chinese currency, which Beijing informally links to the greenback. Many Asian central banks have been selling their currencies in recent months as the return of global risk appetite has pushed the dollar to 15-month lows against a basket of currencies.
Although APEC leaders including U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao say the global economy must be rebalanced away from its over-reliance on U.S. consumers buying Asian goods with borrowed money, the fact remains that for the time being, Asia's recovery will rely on exports.
The current dollar/yuan arrangement suits Washington and Beijing, said the meeting participant. "There was disappointment from the export-reliant nations."
In the statement the APEC leaders said they "firmly reject all forms of protectionism and reaffirm our commitment to keep markets open and refrain from raising new barriers to investment or to trade in goods and services." They called for a "high-level political commitment" to the stalled Doha Round of global trade talks.
They vowed to cooperate to "ensure that our macroeconomic, regulatory and structural policies are collectively consistent with more sustainable and balanced trajectories of growth" and to take unspecified steps "to help prevent credit and asset price cycles from becoming forces of destabilization."
APEC governments will also explore "a possible Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific in the future," the leaders said.
During the meeting, Chile's Foreign Minister Mariano Fernandez said the leaders were discussing currencies -- a topic of considerable concern through the week of APEC meetings, which also included finance, trade and foreign ministers.
A near-final draft of the leaders' statement called for a move toward "market-oriented exchange rates," said the person who was in the meeting. That phrase, ultimately dropped by the leaders, had been used by APEC finance ministers in their statement Thursday.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told his fellow leaders, "We need something in the statement that would bring some stability to the forex markets," said the person in the meeting. A Russian spokesman couldn't immediately confirm this account.
APEC leaders also watered down their commitment to combating climate change. A draft of the statement, seen by Dow Jones Newswires, specified that global emissions must be cut "to 50% below 1990 levels by 2050."
The final statement, however, said only, "global action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions will need to be accompanied by measures, including financial assistance and technology transfer to developing economies for their adaptation to the adverse impact of climate change."
—P.R. Venkat, William Mallard, Ditas Lopez, Wynne Wang, David Roman, Sam Holmes, Arran Scott and Se Young Lee contributed this article.