CALENDAR 03 DECEMBER 2007 – 07 DECEMBER 2007

Monday, December 03, 2007
-GMT 01:00 JPN BOJ Governor *****ui to Meet With Business Leaders in Nagoya

-GMT 08:55 GER Manufacturing PMI (Nov) EST 52.9 PREVIOUS 51.7
Definition
The Index is widely used by industrialized economies to assess business confidence. Germany, Japan and the UK use PMI surveys for both manufacturing and services industries. The numbers are arrived at through a series of questions regarding Business activity, New Business, Employment, Input Prices, Prices Charged and Business Expectations. In addition to the headline figures, the prices paid components is highly scrutinized by the markets for evaluating pricing power and inflationary risks.

-GMT 09:00 EU Manufacturing PMI (Nov) EST 52.6 PREVIOUS 52.6
Definition
The Index is widely used by industrialized economies to assess business confidence. Germany, Japan and the UK use PMI surveys for both manufacturing and services industries. The numbers are arrived at through a series of questions regarding Business activity, New Business, Employment, Input Prices, Prices Charged and Business Expectations. In addition to the headline figures, the prices paid components is highly scrutinized by the markets for evaluating pricing power and inflationary risks.

-GMT 09:30 UK Manufacturing PMI (Nov) EST 52.6 PREVIOUS 52.9
Definition
The Index is widely used by industrialized economies to assess business confidence. Germany, Japan and the UK use PMI surveys for both manufacturing and services industries. The numbers are arrived at through a series of questions regarding Business activity, New Business, Employment, Input Prices, Prices Charged and Business Expectations. In addition to the headline figures, the prices paid components is highly scrutinized by the markets for evaluating pricing power and inflationary risks.

-GMT 09:30 EU ECB's Trichet Speaks in Brussels

-GMT 10:00 EU Unemployment (Oct) EST 7.3% PREVIOUS 7.3%
Definition
The percentage of the people classified as unemployed as compared to the total labor force.

-GMT 13:00 EU ECB's Gonzalez-Paramo Speaks in Milan

-GMT 13:00 USA Fed's Rosengren Speaks on Subprime Mortgages in Boston

-GMT 15:00 USA ISM Index (Nov) EST 66.0 PREVIOUS 63.0
Definition
The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Index is a composite diffusion index of national manufacturing conditions. Readings above 50 percent indicate an expanding factory sector. The index is calculated from five of the eight sub-components of a monthly survey of purchasing managers at roughly 400 manufacturing firms representing 20 industries and all 50 states. The survey queries purchasing managers about the general direction of production, orders, inventories, employment, vendor deliveries and prices.

-GMT 15:00 USA ISM-Manufacturing EST 50.5 PREVIOUS 50.9
Definition
Also known as Non-Manufacturing ISM. This index is based on a survey of about 370 purchasing executives in industries of finance, insurance, real estate, communications, and utilities. It reports business activity in the service sector.

-GMT 19:00 EU ECB's Bini Smaghi Speaks in Brussels

-GMT 20:30 USA Yellen Speaks in Seattle on US Outlook and Monetary Policy

Tuesday, December 04, 2007
-GMT 10:00 EU PPI (m/m), (Oct) EST 0.4% PREVIOUS 0.4%
-GMT 10:00 EU PPI (y/y), (Oct) EST 3.0% PREVIOUS 3.7%
Definition
The PPI gauges the average changes in prices received by domestic producers for their output at all stages of processing. The PPI data is compiled from most sectors of the economy, such as manufacturing, mining and agriculture.

-GMT 14:00 CAN Bank of Canada Rate Decision EST 4.5% PREVIOUS 4.5%

-GMT 22:30 AUS RBA Rate Decision EST 6.75% PREVIOUS 6.75%

Wednesday, December 05, 2007
-GMT 08:30 EU ECB's Trichet Speaks in Berlin

-GMT 08:55 GER Services PMI (Nov) EST 53.5 PREVIOUS 55.1
Definition
The Index is widely used by industrialized economies to assess business confidence. Germany, Japan and the UK use PMI surveys for both manufacturing and services industries. The numbers are arrived at through a series of questions regarding Business activity, New Business, Employment, Input Prices, Prices Charged and Business Expectations. In addition to the headline figures, the prices paid components is highly scrutinized by the markets for evaluating pricing power and inflationary risks.

-GMT 09:00 EU Services PMI (Nov) EST 53.7 PREVIOUS 53.7
Definition
The Index is widely used by industrialized economies to assess business confidence. Germany, Japan and the UK use PMI surveys for both manufacturing and services industries. The numbers are arrived at through a series of questions regarding Business activity, New Business, Employment, Input Prices, Prices Charged and Business Expectations. In addition to the headline figures, the prices paid components is highly scrutinized by the markets for evaluating pricing power and inflationary risks.

-GMT 09:30 UK Services PMI (Nov) EST 52.9 PREVIOUS 53.1
Definition
The Index is widely used by industrialized economies to assess business confidence. Germany, Japan and the UK use PMI surveys for both manufacturing and services industries. The numbers are arrived at through a series of questions regarding Business activity, New Business, Employment, Input Prices, Prices Charged and Business Expectations. In addition to the headline figures, the prices paid components is highly scrutinized by the markets for evaluating pricing power and inflationary risks.

-GMT 10:00 EU Retail sales (m/m), (Oct) EST -0.3% PREVIOUS 0.3%
-GMT 10:00 EU Retail sales (y/y), (Oct) EST 1.2% PREVIOUS 1.6%
Definition
The retail sales report is a measure of the total receipts of retail stores from samples representing all sizes and kinds of business in retail trade throughout the nation. It is the most timely indicator of broad consumer spending patterns and is adjusted for normal seasonal variation, holidays, and trading-day differences. Retail sales include durable and nondurable merchandise sold, and services and excise taxes incidental to the sale of merchandise. Excluded are sales taxes collected directly from the customer. It also excludes spending for services, a large component of consumer expenditures. Retail sales is a the first picture of consumer spending for a given month. Retail sales are often viewed ex-autos, as auto sales can move sharply from month-to-month. Also, gas and food component changes are often a result of price changes rather than shifting consumer demand. Retail sales can be quite volatile and the advance reports are subject to large revisions.

-GMT 13:30 USA Productivity (Q3) EST 5.6% PREVIOUS 4.9%
Definition
The economic measure of efficiency summarizing the value of outputs relative to the value of inputs.

-GMT 13:30 USA Unit Labor Cost (Q3) EST -0.1% PREVIOUS -0.2%

-GMT 15:00 USA Factory Orders (m/m), (Oct) EST 0.0% PREVIOUS 0.2%
Definition
Factory orders refer to the total of durable and nondurable good orders.

-GMT 15:00 USA ISM Non-Manufacturing (Nov) EST 55.0 PREVIOUS 55.8
Definition
Also known as Non-Manufacturing ISM. This index is based on a survey of about 370 purchasing executives in industries of finance, insurance, real estate, communications, and utilities. It reports business activity in the service sector.

-GMT 20:00 NZD RBNZ Rate Decision EST 8.25% PREVIOUS 8.25%

Thursday, December 06, 2007
-GMT 05:00 JPN Leading Economic Index (P Oct) EST 20.0 PREVIOUS 0.0%


-GMT 05:00 JPN Coincident indicator (P Oct) EST 66.7 PREVIOUS 60.0
Definition
An economic indicator that generally moves in line with the general business cycle such as industrial production.

-GMT 06:00 JPN Machine Tool Orders (y/y), (Nov P) EST % PREVIOUS 16.6%
Definition
Machine Orders Data (also known as Machine Tool Order Data) is a figure issued by Japan Machine Tool Builders Association (JMTBA) every month. It serves as one indicator of the Japanese economy. In the forex market, the release of such data is often followed by sharp change in currency exchange rate.

-GMT 09:30 UK Indus. Production (m/m), (Oct) EST 0.2% PREVIOUS -0.4%
-GMT 09:30 UK Indus. Production (y/y), (Oct) EST 0.7% PREVIOUS -0.2%
Definition
Industrial production consists of the total output of a nation’s plants, utilities, and mines. From a fundamental point of view, it is an important economic indicator that reflects the strength of the economy, and by extrapolation, the strength of a specific currency.

-GMT 09:30 UK Manuf. Production (m/m), (Oct) EST 0.2% PREVIOUS -0.6%
-GMT 09:30 UK Manuf. Production (y/y), (Oct) EST 0.4% PREVIOUS -0.1%
Definition
Manufacturing production is the indicator of production level in the manufacturing sector.

-GMT 11:00 GER Factory orders (m/m), (Oct) EST 0.9% PREVIOUS -2.5%
-GMT 11:00 GER Factory orders (y/y), (Oct) EST 6.2% PREVIOUS 1.1%
Definition
Factory orders refer to the total of durable and nondurable good orders.

-GMT 12:00 UK BoE Rate Decision EST 5.75% PREVIOUS 5.75%

-GMT 12:45 EU ECB Rate Decision EST 4.0% PREVIOUS 4.0%

-GMT 13:30 EU Trichet Speaks at ECB Monthly News Conference

-GMT 13:30 USA Initial Claims EST 335k PREVIOUS 352k
Definition
New unemployment claims are compiled weekly to show the number of individuals who filed for unemployment insurance for the first time. An increasing (decreasing) trend suggests a deteriorating (improving) labor market. The four-week moving average of new claims smoothes out weekly volatility.

-GMT 23:50 JPN GDP (q/q), (Q3 F) EST 0.6% PREVIOUS 0.6%
-GMT 23:50 JPN GDP (y/y), (Q3 ) EST 2.6% PREVIOUS 2.6%
Definition
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the total value of final goods and services produced within a country's borders in a year. It is one of the measures of national income and output. It may be used as one indicator of the standard of living in a country, but there may be limitations with this view.

-GMT 23:50 JPN GDP Deflator (y/y), (Q3 F) EST PREVIOUS -0.3%

Friday, December 07, 2007
-GMT 11:00 GER Indus. Production (m/m), (Oct) EST -0.5% PREVIOUS 0.3%
-GMT 11:00 GER Indus. Production (y/y), (Oct) EST 5.9% PREVIOUS 6.0%
Definition
Industrial production consists of the total output of a nation’s plants, utilities, and mines. From a fundamental point of view, it is an important economic indicator that reflects the strength of the economy, and by extrapolation, the strength of a specific currency.

-GMT 13:30 USA Nonfarm Payroll (Nov) EST 70k PREVIOUS 166k
-GMT 13:30 USA Unemployment Rate (Nov) EST 4.8% PREVIOUS 4.7%
-GMT 13:30 USA Avg Hrly Earnings (Nov) EST 0.3% PREVIOUS 0.2%
-GMT 13:30 USA Work Week (Nov) EST 33.8hrs PREVIOUS 33.8hrs
Definition
In the US, the employment report, also known as the labor report, is regarded as the most important among all economic indicators. The report provides the first comprehensive look at the economy, covering nine economic categories. Here are the three main components of the report:
Payroll Employment: Measures the change in number of workers in a given month and measures the number of jobs in more than 500 industries (ex-¬farming) in all states and 255 metropolitan areas. The employment estimates are based on a survey of larger businesses and counts the number of paid employees working part-time or full-time in the nation's business and government establishments. This release is the most closely watched indicator because of its timeliness, accuracy and its comprehensiveness. It is important to compare this figure to a monthly moving average (6 or 9 months) to capture a true perspective of the trend in labor market strength. Equally important are the frequent revisions for the prior months, which are often significant.
Unemployment Rate: The percentage of the civilian labor force actively looking for employment but unable to find jobs. Although it is a highly proclaimed figure (due to simplicity of the number and its political implications), the unemployment rate gets relatively less importance in the markets because it is known to be a lagging indicator -- it usually falls behind economic turns.
Average Hourly Earnings Growth: The growth rate between one month’s average hourly rate and another’s sheds light on wage growth and, hence, assesses the potential of wage-push inflation. The year-on-year rate is also important in capturing the longer-term trend.
The employment data give the most comprehensive report on how many people are looking for jobs, how many have them, what they're getting paid and how many hours they are working. These numbers are the best way to gauge the current state and future direction of the economy. They also provide insight on wage trends and wage inflation. By tracking the jobs data, investors can sense the degree of tightness in the job market. If wage
inflation threatens, usually interest rates will rise, and bond and stock prices will fall. One weakness in this indicator is it is subject to significant revisions and large seasonal distortions.

-GMT 14:45 USA Michigan Sentiment (P Dec) EST 75.0 PREVIOUS 76.1
Definition
This survey measures the attitudes and expectations concerning both present and future economic conditions of 500 consumers. Just like Consumer Confidence, the level of consumer sentiment is directly related to the strength of consumer spending. It is almost identical, with two subindexes - expectations and current conditions, but has two monthly releases, a preliminary and final reading. The consumer expectations portion of the Michigan survey is a component of the leading economic indicators index. Consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the economy, so the markets follow any indicator relating to consumer behavior and attitudes. The more confident consumers are about the economy and their own personal finances, the more likely they are to spend. It is interesting to note that changes in consumer sentiment and retail sales don't move in tandem.

While AKFOREX attempts to ensure the accuracy of these data by using sources it believes to be reliable, release dates, times, items included and content are frequently subject to change, error and ommissions. These data shall not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any security. AKFOREX shall not assume any legal liability or responsibility for any incorrect, misleading or altered information contained herein.