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“The Asian rally is under way,” says Yiannis Moustrous, editor of The Silk Road Investor. Here, he looks at a favored pair of NYSE-listed banks; one in India, the other in South Korea.

“The latest rally started from depressed levels, particularly in comparison to other regions of the world.

“Further, the current oil price weakness–if sustained–will act as a positive catalyst for Asian economies that are net oil importers.

“Extreme selling conditions usually set the stage for a rally, which can be rather substantial when a lot of cash is on the sidelines, a lot of short positions need to be covered and marginally positive news emerges. These conditions are currently in place in Asia.

“The previous selloff is giving us the opportunity to add one more position to our India holdings:ICICI Bank. I’ve recommended this company before, and I view it as one of the stronger private banks in India.

“It also offers decent insurance exposure, a sector that has

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Satcon Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: SATC), a leading provider of utility scale distributed power solutions for the renewable energy market, recently announced its financial results for the second quarter ending June 30, 2008. The company’s shares declined earlier this week after the announcement of a net loss of $8 million, or $0.18 per share, compared with a net loss of $3.7 million, or $0.09 per share, for the second quarter of 2007. Analysts estimated a new loss of $0.07 per share for the second quarter of 2008.

During the second quarter, revenue increased 45 percent to $16.9 million, up from $11.7 million in the second quarter one-year earlier. According to Steve Rhoades, the president and chief executive officer of Satcon Technology Corporation, the company posted a net loss for the quarter due to a number of factors, including the restructuring of operations. Despite the loss for the quarter, cash used

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Energy and Capital
“Is the world suddenly losing its appetite for oil and natural gas? No, demand is still higher than ever before. Although the rate of growth is slowing somewhat due to record prices, demand in Asia and the Middle East is still red-hot and will continue to outweigh declining demand in the US and Europe…So what’s the deal?

The recovery of the dollar, however illusory, is the main factor taking down the price of gold, oil and other commodities. As I have said here more than once, the daily news about oil inventories, demand levels, even pipeline attacks isn’t nearly as important as the valuation of the dollar. (And no, it’s still not because of the evil speculators.)…

The reason is simply that when traders have lost confidence in the stock market, they fly to the safety of commodities, energy and gold. When confidence returns, they fly right …

Columbus McKinnon Corporation (CMCO) is taking advantage of strong international sales to grow its profits.

For 135 years, Columbus McKinnon has been manufacturing products to move materials in numerous industries including fabrication, food processing, mining, forestry, entertainment, trucking, and defense. The company's primary products include hoists, lifting chain, overhead crane systems and below-the-hook attachments.

CMCO Beat Wall Street Estimates for the First Quarter 2009 by 15.09%

On July 24, Columbus McKinnon reported first-quarter 2009 earnings and surprised on estimates by 8 cents per share. Earnings per share rose 10.9% to 61 cents from 55 cents in the year ago period. Analysts expected 53 cents per share.

Sales grew 6.9% to $151.2 million from $141.5 million in the first-quarter of 2008. The revenue growth was attributed to the company's strategy to increase its presence in international markets. During the quarter, energy, mining, entertainment and public infrastructure construction markets were

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Just a heads up that I will be traveling virtually non-stop for the next month, including visits to three different continents taking me everywhere from Costa Rica to Switzerland to Thailand.I can't guarantee that I will always have access to a solid Internet connection, but I will be doing my best to bring you updates from my stops ... including photos of anything interesting I see along the way -- whether investment related or not.It will be great to see exactly what's happening around the world right now ... whether Europe really is slowing down ... how quickly Asia is still growing ... and whether or not Latin America's roads are improving as much as people say they are.All in all, it's going to be a real adventure, and I want you along for the ride. So stay tuned!   

We maintain our Buy recommendation and the same valuation target for Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd. (CHT), the largest integrated telecom operator in Taiwan, ahead of its second quarter fiscal 2008 earnings results.

Robust growth of Internet & Data and Wireless value-added services boosted the sustainable long-term business prospects for the company. We believe the gradual migration to 3G mobile technology is likely to benefit the company’s financials moving forward.

Since the telecom subscriber base of Taiwan is near saturation, Chunghwa has undertaken initiatives, in synergy with its strong balance sheet, to implement a next-generation converged-IP network as it expands coverage outside Asia. This new endeavor enables the company to provide services in different regions of Europe and the U.S.A.

Chunghwa Telecom is trading at 17.9x our estimate for 2008 earnings, which represents a premium to both the S&P 500 and the peer group (which includes other Asian telecom carriers) average.

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Ever since the illusive credit turmoil began sentiment in the market place has been fickle and essentially, like the assets of which it consists, volatile. We started off with an adamant focus on downside risks to growth which then turned into a focus and fear of inflation. Now, as the cyclical data has turned for the worse in Europe and many places in Asia the focus seems to be reverting to growth. Now, I won't go into the whole decoupling v recoupling discussion at this point since I think that this dichotomy is a false one. It never was about de-coupling à la traditionelle but moreso about two interrelated points. The first would be the extent to which the world already has decoupled from the US in the sense that a key group of emerging economies are now set to ascend in economic prowess. The second would be ...

Financial NewsJason Corcoran in Moscow28 Jul 2008 The Russian investment bank benefits from privatisations Andrei Sharonov, managing director and chairman of the board of directors at independent Russian investment bank Troika Dialog, knows more than most about the links between Russia’s public and private sectors. He served in the Government for a decade, including nine years as Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade.Troika’s status as, in observers’ eyes, the Kremlin’s preferred investment bank has been cemented by its leading role in the recent sale of a 25% stake in state-controlled carmaker AvtoVAZ to France’s Renault, its mandates from the break-up of the electricity monopoly UES and its involvement in the privatisation programme of the state-owned rail giant RZD.The deals have propelled Troika to the top of the Russian mergers and acquisitions league table for the first six ...

[Update: Brad Setser clarifies, in the comment section, his view on Sender's FT piece referenced below]

THE last week (or was that year?) has certainly been something of a ride hasn't? In fact, I thought it would be apt to reproduce this picture by the brilliant KAL who normally spices up the Economist with his imagery that lay serious claim to the adage that a picture tells more than a thousand words. This particular specimen and the ensuing headline were on the front cover in October 1997 when markets also took investors and observers for a roller-coaster ride. I think it is quite fitting in describing the feeling many a trader and market participant must have at the moment.

Even though it could only seem as a few days ago that the credit turmoil went global with BNP Paribas' announcement that it too

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We’d like to announce a new 12-page complimentary special report on Asian and Indian stocks, courtesy of our friends at Elliott Wave International.

Investment Opportunities for Asia’s Big 6 Markets will give you specific forecasts and valuable commentary …