SigmaForex trading hours

• 24-Hour Trading

SigmaForex is a true 24-hour, which offers a major advantage over equities trading. Whether it's 6pm or 6am, somewhere in the world there are always buyers and sellers actively trading foreign currencies. Traders can always respond to breaking news immediately, and P&L is not affected by after hours earning reports or analyst conference calls.

After hours trading for U.S. equities brings with it several limitations. ECN's (Electronic Communication Networks), also called matching systems, exist to bring together buyers and sellers - when possible. However, there is no guarantee that every trade will be executed, nor at a fair market price. Quite frequently, traders must wait until the market opens the following day in order to receive a tighter spread.

Sigmaforex trading hours determines when an investor can make his trade. There are times when he is sitting in USA making a deal with a party in Tokyo, and when night falls there, it is the end of the day for him. Even though there may be no trade happening in Japan there might be some in USA, and this will have an impact on the currency rate in his country. So, it can be said that at any given point of time someone is trading and someone is making money out of the forex trade. Sigmaforex trading hours extends for about 5 and a half working days every week and there are times when business exchanges overlap when time zones meet and this is when peak transactions take place.

The trading hours will also determine the kind of business deals being carried out between countries. And the one who has made an investment in a currency pair across the globe could earn couple of pips while he is sleeping. These are basically profitable returns on the money he has put into the currency pair. One other thing to remember is that the money a person earns will be in the currency of the other country, and so he needs to be aware of the exchange rates and conversion rates to calculate how much his actual earnings are. Sometimes people get caught up in their earnings but fail to realize that their actual profits might be less if the currency's value is lesser than their own. All these need to be done within the trading hours.

BG expects energy industry costs to fall

04-11-08 The industry is now likely to see a "significant fall" in costs as raw material prices fall and oil services sub-contractors adjust to a new era of cheaper crude.
In expectation of falling costs, Mr Chapman said that BG was putting on hold a decision to expand a huge oil and gas project in Kazakhstan. It follows a similar move by Royal Dutch Shell, which has delayed a decision on financing a second phase of an oil sands project in Canada.
Mr Chapman said that BG was in talks with the Kazakh state oil company KazMunaiGaz about the rescheduling phase three of the Karachaganak project.

"We think there will be a significant fall in costs," said Mr Chapman. "What we do not want to do is make a commitment to it at the peak of the cost cycle."
Oilfield services and equipment costs rocketed as the price of crude reached record levels, hitting $ 147 a barrel in July. Oil and gas producers now expect industry costs to drop after oil futures declined 33 % in October, a record monthly drop, on signs that the global economic slowdown is curbing fuel consumption.
BG, the UK's third-largest oil and gas company, posted third-quarter profits up 140 % to £ 857 mm, well ahead of analysts' forecasts of £ 754 mm. BG added that it was on track to sustain a 6 %-8 % compound annual growth rate in production from 2005 to 2020.
"The update provides a timely reminder that BG remains a leading growth story in energy," analysts at Morgan Stanley said in a research note. And ING analyst Jason Kenney said the third-quarter results are stunning and the big reserves boost shows it to be a major growth play with a very attractive strategy.

BG said that it has raised its average contract price for UK gas deliveries by 62 %. The company is now charging 55 pence a therm in the year started October 1, up from 34 pence a therm a year earlier.

Finance director Ashley Almanza said: "A number of gas sale contracts have come to an end and we now have the opportunity to reprice this."
BG plans to sell about 60 % of its UK gas under contracts by October, down from about 75 % previously.

[SigmaForex Introducing Broker]

Expand your business and revenue potential while offering your referred clients the highest available level of service and support.
Sigma’s Introducing Broker Program allows individuals to receive remuneration for directing new clients to Sigma.

Refer new self-directed or managed account clients to Sigma and make easier the account opening and funding process. In return, Sigma provides all of the essential tools and resources you need to launch and manage a successful IB operation.
We are committed to delivering the highest levels of service and a quality product offering to help you grow your business.
Sigma provides an array of services and as an Introducing Broker, you and your clients will benefit from:

Sophisticated trading platform

Our trading platform feature quality execution capabilities as well as advanced and easy-to-use order entry and position management tools, all in a secure environment. A full suite of decision support tools, from charting to research, news and more, are also available to clients free of charge.
Furthermore, our software, service, and execution is second to none.
Account for all levels of experience

Your clients will be able to organize their trading account according to their needs and their experience level and risk appetite. Sigma is best suited and ideal for experienced traders and individual investors.
Unique Product, is the only firm to offer competitive spreads and zero commissions and zero swaps
Dedicated back-office support

Sigma supplies complete back office services.
Sigma’s Partner Services team is dedicated to providing Outstanding Compensation and full account management support to our IB clients. As part of our service, Sigma provides all IB partners online access to our proprietary reporting tool, allowing you to closely monitor referred account volume and revenue. Our customer support is 24 hours, customers may fund around the clock.

For more details contcat IB@SigmaForex.com

ITT 3Q profit falls as costs eclipse sales jump

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) - ITT Corp. said Friday its third-quarter profit fell 6 percent as a jump in costs offset a surge in revenue.
For the period ended Sept. 30, the defense contractor posted net income of $216.3 million, or $1.18 per share, compared with net income of $230.1 million, or $1.25 per share, in the year-ago period.

Sales jumped 32 percent to $2.88 billion from $2.18 billion.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected, on average, earnings of $1.06 per share on revenue of $2.82 billion.

Total costs and expenses rose to $2.55 billion from $1.92 billion, with selling, general and administrative expenses rising 27 percent.
Revenue at the fluid technology, defense electronics and services, and motion and flow control units all jumped during the period.
Shares fell $3.99, or 9.6 percent, to $37.38 after the opening bell as the broader markets sank.


[SigmaForex Money Manager]

Elevate the quality of your trading, Money managers trading pooled or individual client funds benefit from Sigma’s trading and administrative tools and services.

With preferential rating access to Sigma’s research staff, sophisticated trading platform and reporting tools, Sigma’s money manager solution is one of the most competitive in the marketplace.
Sigma provides a dedicated team of account management specialists to provide ongoing back-office support, and help reduce your administrative responsibilities.
Highly developed trading platform

Our trading platform feature quality execution capabilities as well as advanced and easy-to-use order entry and position management tools, all in a secure friendly environment. A full suite of decision support tools, from charting to research, news and more, are also available to clients all for free.
Characteristic tools
Our proprietary tool offers money managers a comprehensive and efficient way to manage pooled customer funds and track portfolio performance. Accessible online, the system automatically journals percentages of your transactions from your Master account into your client's sub accounts at the close of each trade.

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Back-office support
Our Partner Services team is dedicated to providing full account management support to our money managers and your clients. Our customer support is 24 hours, customers may fund around the clock. Sigma’s Partner Services team is dedicated to providing Outstanding Compensation and full account management support.

For more details contcat MM@SigmaForex.com

Mortgage costs keep falling

NATIONWIDE, the UK's largest building society, has slashed its fixed-rate mortgage deals for the second time in two weeks, higlighting an increased expectation from major lenders that the UK base rate will fall next month.
The lender will now offer a two-year fixed-rate deal of 4.39% to borrowers with a deposit of at least 10%. The deal was only cut from 4.69% to 4.49% early this month and from 4.95% to 4.69% at the end of May.

The cuts have come despite the fact the base rate has been held at 4.75% since last August. Nationwide's standard variable rate has remained pegged at 5.99%.
Fixed-rate deals have become cheaper following a drop in the swap rate - the level at which financial institutions lend to each other. Abbey, the UK's second largest mortgage lender, also slashed its deals earlier this month, taking with its two-year fixed-rate deals coming down 0.10 percentage points to 4.54%.
The bomb attacks in London last week have also heightened fears for UK economic growth and therefore increased the chances of the Bank of England cutting rates in August. Economists are now pencilling in two rate cuts before the end of year, taking the base rate to 4.25%.
For borrowers with a 5%-10% deposit, Nationwide has slashed its two-year fixed deal to 4.69% from 4.99%, its three-year deals to 4.89% from 5.19% and its five-year offer to 4.99% from 5.29%. Those with more than 10% to put down can get 4.59% on a two-year deal instead of 4.69% before and 4.69% instead of 4.79% over five years.
Higher rates are available for borrowers who do not want to pay the £385 reservation fee – attractive for borrowers with smaller mortgages. For example, the best rate of 4.39% on a two-year deal rises to 4.79%.

In it latest analysis, lender Bradford & Bingley says swap rates have moved from an average of 5% to 4.5% over the past three months.
'Now fixes have become more competitive, and the differential with variable rates has narrowed, they've become increasingly popular,' said David Bitner, head of mortgages.
'However, the reason why fixed rates have become more competitive is that they've already factored in rate falls. Moving forward, borrowers need to take this into account when deciding which type of mortgage to select.'

Some other top deals on the market include a 4.35% two-year fixed deal at West Bromwich Building Society and 4.34% at Portman Building Society. Borrowers should also factor in other costs, such as the reservation fee. Portman, for example, charges £499.
• FIRST Direct, the internet and telephone bank owned by HSBC, launched a fixed rate of 4.89 per cent for three years on its offset mortgage today. The deals comes with a fee of between £195 and £295 depending on the size of the loan.


[SigmaForex White Label]

Forex White Label Program

As your partner, our goal is to support you through the planning and launch phases and beyond to ensure a mutually successful and long-term business relationship
Establish your brand in the Forex Brokerage industry.

Our Forex White Label program is for individuals and institutions that want to establish a brand name and a presence in the Forex industry. As a white label partner, you will be provided with a platform branded with your name and logo as well as content for your introducing broker website. Also Sigma white label partner program enables banks and brokers to satisfy their customers' demand for online trading tools. Our trading solutions enable you to harness and develop already existing customer trading relationships and extract greater returns from them whilst streamlining internal trading operations and rendering them as efficient as possible.

You will also enjoy our 24-hour market, full service of back office support, and other administrative and support functions.

Ideal candidates for the Forex white label program include:

• Financial services firms that want to establish a new Forex brokerage division. For example, banks, insurance companies, etc.
• Trading firms and/or online brokers that want to offer a greater range of products to their customers. you will be providing your clients with a great value-added service while increasing the profitability of your firm.
• Companies offering Forex tools and advisory services - This can be websites or newsletters that provide an analysis of the Forex or futures market, advisory businesses, etc. that want to expand their web presence by offering online Forex trading capabilities to their existing client base.
• Forex White Label Introducing Brokers will enjoy the most advanced Forex trading software in the market. The web-based white label trading platform provides real time, streaming currency prices and instantaneous one click execution, real time management of currency positions, in addition to complete back office support and reporting features. Along with other tools to help traders make trading decisions. The software is also compatible with most operating systems. This means that your customers can trade currencies from any computer, anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day.

If you want to discuss your potential Forex White Label Introducing Brokerage business with us via mail

Falling costs are dark clouds' platinum lining - Aquarius

Aquarius Platinum says while costs are key in the current environment, the company stands to benefit from lower costs in the current, second quarter.

JOHANNESBURG -

Aquarius Platinum (JSE:AQP, ASX;AQP, LSE:AQP) said today it may benefit from a reduction in costs in the current second quarter of the 2009 financial year, while the company expects a negative metals price revenue adjustment of $34.2m in the same quarter.
Aquarius spokesperson Nick Bias said today that in the current environment there were three further opportunities to bring costs down; the falling prices of consumables such as diesel and steel, the weaker rand and lower prices of mining consumables.
He said Aquarius would start to benefit from these factors in the current quarter and stressed that costs were "key" right now as it was one of few macro economic factors that could be influenced by mining companies.
The company had already achieved a reduction in unit costs in the first quarter. It reported a reduction in cash costs per ounce at Kroondal, Marikana, Mimosa CTRP and Platinum Mile mines.
"In this quarter we will benefit (cost reductions) from a combination of the macro scene and what we achieve internally. The dark clouds do have a platinum lining," Bias confirmed.
Aquarius also said in a statement that looking to the second quarter 2009, it was anticipated that reductions in unit costs would be achieved again as production increased further and falling prices for diesel, chemicals and steel started to flow through to the cost base.
In addition, US$ weakness was expected to provide some respite as the falling price of consumables starts to feed through to costs during the second quarter.
Bias said the company was "well-positioned" on the cash cost curve of the platinum industry as it believed its cash cost of production was lower than that of major producers Anglo Platinum and Lonmin.
Aquarius' attributable production increased 17% to 128,366 PGM ounces in the first quarter.
The company saw its strategy of owner-miner paying dividends at Everest mine in the last quarter as it managed to boost production by 3% here, while it also took charge of human resources and management at Marikana and Kroondal, which "helped to turn production around". Kroondal saw an increase of 22% in production and Marikana a 37% increase.
"Those revised industrial relations models started to pay off as production increased and costs came down," said Bias.
Commenting on the company's position on the industry cash cost curve, Blue Oar Securities mining analyst Alison Turner told Mineweb Aquarius Platinum was one of the lowest cost producers in the industry, with the bulk of its assets situated in the bottom quartile.
"As such, we believe that the company is very well placed relative to peers to withstand a downturn.
"Through the suspension of operations at the Marikana number 2 shaft, Aquarius has also demonstrated a willingness to react timeously to industry conditions, and in the event that prices were to deteriorate further we would expect to see further cuts at Marikana - most likely in the opencast operations."


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Construction costs in UAE fall by 30% in wake of crisis

Construction costs have dropped in the UAE by an average of a third this year compared to the last quarter of 2008, it was reported on Monday.
The 30 percent fall, which amounts to between 50 and 100 dirhams per square foot, is strongly linked to the drop in steel price and underpinned by the fall in the value of the Euro, according to industry experts.
Prices of other materials have also fallen with aluminium, wood and glass and diesel seeing prices cut by between 15 and 45 percent, according to UAE daily Emirates Business.
“It is fair to say that construction execution charges or fees have decreased between 25 per cent to 30 per cent in comparison to the last quarter of 2008," said Faris Saeed, general manager of Diamond Developers.
"Obviously, there has been a slowdown and demand has reduced. But the steep fall in steel prices has had a major role to play in the fall in construction cost,” added Dawood Samy Khorshed, managing director at Master Civil Constructions.
The exact percentage of cost decline was hard to pinpoint because it varies in association with the type of building, size, material and location, Saeed said.

In Dubai and Abu Dhabi, construction cost currently range from between 400 dirhams to 900 dirhams, depending on the location of residential buildings.

"The bigger projects will incur higher construction execution charges compared to the smaller projects,” Saeed said
Meanwhile, Marwan Haloui, head of the technology division at DEC, said falling oil prices was the root cause of the cost cuts, as it was the main driver behind the reduction in steel, copper and cost of transportation prices.
He went on to predict that construction costs would fall by another 10 to 15 percent this year.
"The cost is expected to reduce even further and could come down by another 10 per cent to 15 per cent. Several factors including the steep demand of the prices of steel and cement have contributed to the situation,” he said.


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Investor options

The investor or currency speculator has a variety of options for Forex dealing. These are:
Spot trading: where a currency is actually bought and cash settlement, on a margin basis, usually follows within 2 days. The spot market makes up 32 per cent of the Forex market
Forward: where an agreement is made to buy a currency at a future date
Swaps: where an agreement is made to swap an interest rate payment across one currency and switch back to the original currency at a future and defined date. This type of activity makes up 54 per cent of Forex trading
Options where an option confers on the holder the right to buy a currency at a future date, at a pre agreed price

Contracts for Difference where derivatives are settled on the basis of a currency's movement
Spread betting: a legally enforceable wager on the future price of a currency.

[Sigma Contract Specification]

Sigma Forex provide the clients with the lowest spreads in Forex Market for the most traded pairs and Forex spots.

Trading Hours
Sigma Dealing Room operate 24/5 from Sunday 23:00 CET until Friday 23.00 CET.
You Can contact us directly: + 41 435 004 145

Margin Requirements
The margin requirements must be respected by Friday at 23:00 GMT and before holidays.
One of our dealers will contact you if you are below your margin requirements at that time. Your margin requirements will depend on the client's account equity. However, if you approach the level where the loss of your open positions approaches the balance of your account, you will be stopped out and your positions will be closed. Stop positions will be executed when there is only around 50% equity of the required margin left in your account.

Streamline Dealing
Clients will not suffer Price Re-Quote that you can buy and sell directly on real-time prices without a request for quote (RFQ).
Clients taking advantage of wrong price quotes in the Market Watch will be requoted.
Sigma Forex effort is taken to ensure correct pricing at all times. However, there are rare circumstances when wrong prices are given.

Stop Order Execution
Volatile market conditions can result in prices gapping, which may prevent the execution of stop orders (sell stop, buy stop, stop loss) at the price you initially requested. However, our dealers strive to execute all stop orders at the price, or failing that, at the best attainable rate the market allows.

Lot Types
Sigma Forex has generated an ultimate account type that allow you to trade Standard, Mini and Micro lot in the same account which is Sigma Account to make it more simple and easy for traders.

Multi Currency Denomination

Sigma offers the ability to set-up accounts denominated in the following currencies:

• United States dollar (USD)
• Euro (EUR)
• Great Britain pound (GBP)
• Australian dollar (AUD)
• Swiss Frank (CHF)

There is no minimum deposit for opening an account, in order to review the spreads, pip value & margin requirement choose the required pair, leverage & the lot type.

If you have any problem regarding Sigma Contract Specification click on the Live Chat button on the right hand side and our customer support staff will help you through the process.

Unique characteristics of the Forex market

The Forex market has certain unique characteristics that the investor should be aware of:

• it is huge -typically experiencing trading volume in excess of $1 trillion ever day;
• it offers high liquidity to investors. Because of its size, liquidity in very strong, so in most cases speculators will have little difficult in buying or selling a currency;
• the market is open 24 hours a day Monday to Friday. For example, a speculator based in the UK can trade via markets in the Far East during the early hours of the morning, and via the North American markets in the evening;
• it is highly volatile;
• sophisticated tools are available to help you trade;
• a variety of investment options are available;
• investments are typically ‘margin’ type deals, meaning that the potential for losses and profits is multiplied several fold.

[SigmaForex Partnership Services]

Overall View:

Sigma helps a various groups of partners around the world to enlarge their business and expand the full
potential of the Forex market.
Sigma’s services include:

Introducing Brokers: Join our IB network and receive compensation for directing new clients to Sigma.
Money Managers: Full service trading capabilities, plus dedicated account management, client fund
administration and reporting.
White Labels: White Label Program helps fitted firms set up an online presence in the Forex industry
quickly and cost effectively.

A dedicated Partner Services team supports Sigma partners with a full range of account management services.
- Daily P&L, credits, commission allocation, etc.
- Account funding, transfers, allocations, etc.
- Customer on-boarding.

Introducing Broker.

Money Manager.

White Label.

Trading in Forex Guide

The Forex market is a massive market involving over $1trilion dollars traded every day, offering outstanding opportunities for the intrepid private investor.
By timing investments correctly, and by using the leveraged nature of Forex investments to one’s advantage, the private investor can enjoy substantial gains on the back of a relatively modest cash outlay. While Forex is huge, easily dwarfing other global markets such as equities and commodities, private investors make up a tiny proportion of this market.
This is because central bankers, commercial and investment banks, and hedge funds such as the Quantum fund, which is managed by George Soros, all speculate with billions of dollars on a regular basis.

The private investor, therefore, faces formidable competition and just as there are opportunities for substantial profits, losses can be equally dramatic.
Since all currencies are priced relative to each other, an increase in the value of one currency means that, by definition, another currency must have fallen in value. This makes the Forex market inherently more risky than other markets, which are expected to produce long term growth in value.The Forex market is also relatively new, only emerging after the collapse of the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates in 1971.
According to the trade association, International Financial Services London, average daily global turnover in traditional foreign exchange market transactions totalled $2.7 trillion in April 2006. This ranks the Forex market at several times the size of the combined daily turnover of the world's equity markets.


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Learn And Develop your trading skills with Sigma platform!

A Free practice account is a great way to experience the Forex market without risking any money.

For Novice Traders
For those who did not trade in the forex market before can get accustomed to following a market, and open themselves to a whole new way to invest, and it also gives them the chance to understand how the trading platform works.

For Regular Traders
For those who are familliar with trading in forex market, a practice account can help them to get use to the particular characteristics of the Forex market or our trading platform.

For Experienced and Professional Traders
A practice account can even help experienced and professional traders as they can test and practice their trading strategies without risking capital.
Generally the Demo Account has the same capabilities of the real account, the only difference between them is that the real account is with real money and the practice account is with virtual money.

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Sigma Account allow you to open Micro, Mini and Standard lot through only one account and trade in Forex Market
In order to register for a practice account, please Download Sigma Forex Platform and open new account as illustrated below and you will have unlimited access to our Platform for the next 30-days.

If you have any problem regarding Sigma Practice Account you can see User Guides or click on the Live Chat button on the right menu and our customer support staff will help you through the process.

London Session Recap

The price action was relatively calm in London trading as markets continue to look forward to the ECB rate meeting and US nonfarm payrolls into the latter part of the week. European equities were flat pretty much across the board and the FX space was rather calm. EUR/USD managed to eke out a modest 10 pip rally and was sitting near 1.2870/80 just ahead of the NY session. This was despite another poor batch of economic data across the pond.
German retail sales declined -0.2% in December while the market was looking for an improvement to +0.5% from -0.1% the prior month. Meanwhile, eurozone producer prices fell -1.3% and this was also steeper than expected and took the annual run-rate to just 1.8% from 3.3% previously. Thus the ECB will remain hard-pressed to argue that inflation remains a problem near-term.

The yen crosses were likewise little changed as risk trades remained without direction. USD/JPY slipped a modest -18 pips towards 89.50/60 while EUR/JPY was just -15 points lower into the 115.20/30 zone. USD/CAD managed a 30 pip rally to 1.2450/60 as oil prices came off a touch towards $40.20/bbl. The $40 level for crude looks pivotal here and we briefly tried below it yesterday. We would expect a good break to the downside would see USD/CAD approach 1.2500/10 with relative ease.

Upcoming Economic Data Releases (NY Session) prev est
• 2/3 15:00 GMT US Pending Home Sales MoM DEC -4.00% 0.00%
• 2/3 22:00 GMT US ABC Consumer Confidence 1-Feb -54 - -
• 2/3 US Total Vehicle Sales JAN 10.3M 10.2M
• 2/3 US Domestic Vehicle Sales JAN 7.8M 7.7M


[Sigma Services]

As a professional online trading service Sigma strives to give an eminent beyond comparison of professional and individualized trading services, Sigma also provides several facilities for all kinds of traders.
Sigma helps private and institutional clients achieve their trading goals by offering an inclusive forex trading package, along with the state-of-art trading platform, real-time news and wireless access. We relegate to meeting and exceeding our customers' expectations with the utmost professionalism and integrity.

Sigma provides appropriate services satisfying the needs of all business partners’ specified requirements. A client's profit is our success and a client's loss is a significant call of action for us, we consider every client as a special case and a partner.
Sigma's Customer Support is our business core, as we provide 24/7 customer support. We keep in touch with all our clients to make sure that we are on the right pass.

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Downside Euro Protection

The Euro will struggle to make much headway without an improvement in sentiment surrounding the global economy, but there should be solid downside protection given US vulnerability

Risk appetite remained generally weaker on Monday while the European economic data did little to support confidence. Any comments from ECB officials will remain extremely important ahead of Thursdays council meeting. Following January’s meeting, Chairman Trichet suggested that rates would be left on hold in February with the council waiting for fresh staff projections which will be available in March.
Since then, there has been additional pressure for rates to be cut again and any comments over the next 48 hours could provide important hints over the likely policy stance this week. The Euro will continue to be unsettled by structural fears as markets debate the possibility of any Euro-zone economy abandoning the Euro. Fears over further credit-rating downgrades will also tend to be damaging for the currency.

Risk conditions improved to some extent during US trading with a degree of relief over the data and this allowed the Euro to recover back above the 1.28 level. The dollar remained slightly weaker on Tuesday, although the Euro was again unable to break above resistance in the 1.29 region as German retail sales fell


[Why Sigma]

1. Lowest spreads in the forex market, No other broker offers such competitive spreads .
2. Sigma is the only broker that allows you to customize your trading account as you wish.
3. Maintaining the security of your money is a major objective at Sigma.
4. Our devotion to our clients has made our firm a respected industry leader, that we have a strong commitment to maintain a long term relationship with our clients.
5. Low margin requirement.
6. Full Hedging capabilities.
7. Sigma is a registered financial institution, and registered with the European registration authorities. The regulations set out into notice by these agencies are created to help ensure the safety of our clients’ deposits.
8. We maintain enough liquid capital to meet the needs of the amount required to cover all client deposits, potential shift back and forth in the firm’s currency positions and outstanding expenses.
9. We put forward our financial information to regulatory bodies on a weekly and monthly basis.
10. In addition to all the above, Sigma holds all deposits with only highly reputable financial institutions. We are appreciate the trust of our clients place in us.

Chinalco Australia Won’t Discuss Assessment of Chinalco-Rio Transaction

Australia won’t discuss its investigation into Aluminum Corp. of China’s proposed a $19.5 billion investment in Rio Tinto Group, Treasury general manager of foreign investment Patrick Colmer said.
The Foreign Investment Review Board, part of the treasury department, is considering the proposal and must make a recommendation to Treasurer Wayne Swan, who can block the transaction on so-called national interest grounds.
“We will be consulting within government both nationally and at a state level, we will be considering the details of that application with the Foreign Investment Review Board,” Colmer told the Senate Economics Committee in Canberra today. “We do have, particularly with these proposals, a lot of potentially sensitive commercial information, we treat all proposals as commercial in confidence.”
Australia may hold an inquiry as soon as this week to scrutinize potential acquisitions by Chinese state-owned companies led by Aluminum Corp.’s investment in Rio. China Minmetals Corp. last week made a A$2.6 billion ($1.7 billion) takeover bid for OZ Minerals Ltd. and Hunan Valin Iron & Steel Group yesterday agreed to pay A$1.2 billion for a 16.5 percent stake in Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.

China, the world’s biggest consumer of raw materials, is stepping up purchases of mineral producers in Australia, taking advantage of a 36 percent plunge in commodity prices last year. Some 78 percent of Australians oppose investment in Australia by Chinese government-controlled businesses, according to a poll of 1,001 people by the Lowy Institute in September.
“Rio Tinto is a dual-listed company and is two entities, one which is registered in London and one which is registered in Australia,” Colmer said when asked how Australia could impose conditions on the transaction. “It also has significant assets and businesses in Australia and businesses and assets of a company can be subject to foreign investment review irrespective of where the actual company is registered.”

[SigmaForex Introducing Broker]

Expand your business and revenue potential while offering your referred clients the highest available level of service and support.
Sigma’s Introducing Broker Program allows individuals to receive remuneration for directing new clients to Sigma.

Refer new self-directed or managed account clients to Sigma and make easier the account opening and funding process. In return, Sigma provides all of the essential tools and resources you need to launch and manage a successful IB operation.
We are committed to delivering the highest levels of service and a quality product offering to help you grow your business.
Sigma provides an array of services and as an Introducing Broker, you and your clients will benefit from:

Sophisticated trading platform

Our trading platform feature quality execution capabilities as well as advanced and easy-to-use order entry and position management tools, all in a secure environment. A full suite of decision support tools, from charting to research, news and more, are also available to clients free of charge.
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Chinese Companies

Hunan Valin Expands Stake in FMG: Chinese Companies Swarm Australian Miners

While Chinalco’s massive deal with Rio Tinto is still being examined by authorities, Hunan Valin Steel Co. (Valin) has bought a 16.4% stake in Fortescue Metals Group (FMG), Australia’s third largest iron ore producer, and has become its second largest shareholder, gaining a seat in the FMG’s board. But Chinese companies’ acquisition boom in Australia worries some in China’s steel industry that the Australian government may be more sensitive to Chinese capital and that the chaotic splurging in Australian miners may lead to ore surpluses in future.
Valin signed its agreement with FMG yesterday. This together with the equity transfer agreement earlier between Valin and its shareholder Harbinger Capital, an American hedge fund, will bring Valin’s FMG investment to AUD 1.2 billion, as long as the deal is approved by the Australian government.

Two weeks ago, two Chinese state-owned companies, Chinalco and Minmetals, announced investments in other Australian miners, Chinalco in Rio Tinto and Minmetals in OZ. Sinosteel, Wisco, Shougang Group, and Ansteel are all looking to invest in Australia.
One mining company executive worries that such intensive investment in Australian mining resources will certainly make more sensitive the Australian government, who may then set higher obstacles for Chinese acquisitions in Australia. mysteel.com analyst Zeng Jiesheng thinks the disorderliness of Chinese firms’ overseas acquisitions may well trigger supply surpluses.
Before the deal, Valin held 275 million FMG shares. According to the new agreement, Valin will now buy 225 million of FMG’s newly issued shares, increasing its stake in FMG to 16.48%.
Both of Valin’s buys have been for lower than FMG’s share price before trading in FMG’s shares was suspended, AUD 2.83/share. But acquisition rumors are pushing FMG share price higher quickly.

A Valin insider revealed to China Business News that its negotiation with FMG for equity cooperation started on January 6, and that the two parties have been in contact with each other since April, 2008. Valin’s acquisition funds are coming mainly from the company’s own reserves and loans from The Import & Export Bank of China. Valin has confidence that the deal will be approved by supervisory authorities in China and Australia.
Along with its stake and a seat in FMG’s board, Valin has struck an agreement involving long-term iron ore supply, a framework for cooperation on iron ore processing and technical development, and the possibility for Valin’s participation in developing future iron ore projects.
Wang Jun, deputy general manager of Valin Pipeline, Valin’s listed sector, said according to the new contract, FMG will supply Valin with 10 million tons of iron ore annually. Valin estimates it will need to import 11 million tons of iron ore this year, and more in future, so it hopes to stabilize its iron ore supply by closer cooperation with FMG.

CIC Also a Potential Investor?
Unlike BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, FMG sells all its iron ore to Chinese refiners. But the drastic slide in the iron ore market has put heavy pressure on FMG, which only began to produce iron ore in May, 2008. Existing railways in Australia can’t support its production expansion in future, so it needs money for infrastructure construction.

By the end of December, FMG’s total liability had reached AUD 3.14 billion, while its cash reserve was only AUD 439 million. FMG CEO Andrew Forrest said yesterday that introducing Valin as its strategic partner would relieve FMG’s debt burden and lay a solid foundation for the company’s future development. Valin Chairman Li Xiaowei said despite the global economic crisis, his company’s management had faith in FMG’s asset quality and development potential.
FMG declared last week that it had already contacted Anglo American PLC and China Investment Corporation (CIC) as possible investors. It is reported by foreign media that FMG plans to sell preferred equity to CIC in a deal involving AUD 3 billion, but now that deal is under evaluation.


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Our Partner Services team is dedicated to providing full account management support to our money managers and your clients. Our customer support is 24 hours, customers may fund around the clock. Sigma’s Partner Services team is dedicated to providing Outstanding Compensation and full account management support.

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Hitachi turns to external storage, acquires Fabrik

When I reviewed Fabrik's SimpleTech Signature Mini and SimpleTech (re)drive external hard drives a while ago, I liked its tasteful designs. As it turns out, my taste wasn't so peculiar.
Hitachi on Monday announced its decision to acquire Fabrik, a privately held supplier of personal and professional storage solutions.

If you haven't heard of Fabrik, this is because it has been selling external storage under two better-known brands: G-Technology and SimpleTech. CNET has reviewed several products launched under each brand.
Although the financial details of the transaction were not disclosed, Hitachi made it clear that Fabrik's business will remain intact and form the core of Hitachi Global Storage Technologies' new external-storage business.

Going forward, you will still find Fabrik external storage in both G-Technology and SimpleTech brands. The combined company plans to offer external-storage solutions based on both regular hard drives and solid-state drives.
The acquisition seems a natural move for Hitachi. For the Japanese company, it means an expansion into a market for external-storage hardware currently dominated by Seagate and Western Digital. For California-based Fabrik, it means broadening its market horizons, though it probably also means limiting the internal hard drives for its external storage solution to those of Hitachi.


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Barrick Gold Barrick Goes For The Gold

Barrick Gold is in the wrong places at the right time. It is unable to take full advantage of soaring gold prices because some of its mines have less ore in them than it originally thought.
The company is opening new projects to increase its output, and it has managed to wring more profit out of its operations than investors expected, giving a lift to its shares. But it has underpeformed competitors such as Goldcorp and Kinross Gold this year.

On Friday, Barrick Gold (nyse: ABX - news - people ) reported a fourth-quarter loss owing to a 773.0 million Canadian dollar ($619.5 million) noncash goodwill impairment, primarily on the write-down of four assets, but its operating earnings beat analysts’ expectations. The write-downs were at the company’s Kanowna and Osborne mine projects in Australia and its North Mara mine in Tanzania, all of which produced less ore than expected, as well as its Calgary-based Barrick Energy oil and gas development and production unit.

Toronto-based Barrick Gold ’s shares on the New York Stock Exchange rose by 1.2%, or 45cents, to $36.89 at the close, while its shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange added 0.4%, or 18 Canadian cents (15 cents), to 46.08 Canadian dollars ($37.26).


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Daimler AG, Deutsche Boerse Ag, Henkel: German Equity Preview

The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in Germany. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and share prices are from the previous close.
The X-DAX Index gained 1.8 percent to 3,954.01. The measure, derived from trading in DAX Index futures, provides an estimate of Germany’s benchmark index. The DAX declined 1 percent to 3,895.75.

Daimler AG (DAI GY): The world’s largest truckmaker may be active after the European Automotive Manufacturers Association, or ACEA, releases the regions’ industry truck and bus sales figures for January. Daimler fell 3.4 percent to 18.63 euros.
Deutsche Bank AG (DBK GY): Germany’s biggest bank won approval by the country’s antitrust regulator to acquire the majority in Deutsche Postbank AG (DPB GY). Deutsche Bank climbed 4.3 percent to 18.15 euros. Deutsche Postbank fell 1.6 percent to 8.55 euros.

Deutsche Boerse AG (DB1 GY): Europe’s largest exchange by market value reported a 18 percent decline in fourth-quarter profit because earnings last year were boosted by a one-time gain from a property sale. The shares added 1.3 percent to 35.96 euros.
Henkel AG & Co. KGaA (HEN3 GY): The maker of Loctite glue and Right Guard deodorant plans to discuss full-year results. Henkel added 0.1 percent to 17.85 euros.
Q-Cells SE (QCE GY): Germany’s largest solar company secured financing through the end of this year and said demand for its products should recover in the second quarter as solar- park planners regain bank funding. The shares climbed 7.6 percent to 14.46 euros


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