Market News

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- President Barack Obama offered praise for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Monday, though he declined to comment on a possible successor. In an interview on the Charlie Rose Show, Obama said Bernanke has "done an outstanding job. ... He has been an outstanding partner along with the White House in helping us recover much stronger than, for example, our European partners." The president said Bernanke, whose term expires at the end of January 2014, was "a little bit like Bob Muller, the head of the FBI, where he's already stayed a lot longer than he wanted or he was supposed to." Bernanke is seen as likely to step down from the Fed chairmanship.

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- The local government of a town in southern China has falsified economic data, nearly quadrupling the industrial output of 71 local firms, according to a Chinese media report. The falsified data came to light following an investigation by the National Bureau of Statistics, according to a Caixin Online translated version of an original report in the China Business News publication. The local government of Henglan, in Guangdong province, allegedly misreported the industrial production of the local firms as 8.5 billion yuan ($1.39 billion) in 2012, compared with an actual output of 2.2 billion yuan, the report said. Henglan was accused of falsifying the data without the reporting companies' knowledge, according to the translation.

Most Asian markets retreat in choppy trade as investors ponder whether the U.S. Federal Reserve will maintain its monthly bond purchases, with Hong Kong stocks dragged lower by a drop in mainland property and banking shares.

U.S. crude-oil prices advance ahead of weekly data that are expected to show a decline in inventories.

For the 22 million people who are currently unemployed, underemployed or have given up on finding work, the perks offered by the 50 companies on AARP's list of best employers may seem like a sort of mirage. Not only that, these companies are hiring.

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- China received $9.26 billion in foreign direct investment in May, 0.3% higher than in the year-earlier period, according to a Xinhua news report Tuesday citing official data. The inbound investment took the total FDI that China attracted in the first five months of 2013 to $47.6 billion, 1% more than the country received in the same period of 2012. The rise in May FDI marks the fourth straight monthly increase, and follows eight consecutive months of declining FDI flows, according to the Xinhua news report.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Chinese housing prices in the nation's largest cities maintained their upward trend in May, according to data out Tuesday from the National Bureau of Statistics. In its survey covering the 70 large and medium-sized urban centers, 65 showed gains for newly built homes during May, while 3 showed declines and 2 were flat. Compared to May 2012, all but one city showed a rise. Among prices for existing homes, 64 cities showed average gains, 3 showed declines and 3 were unchanged. Existing-home prices rose in 67 of the 70 cities compared to the year-earlier period. The gains offered mixed news for property shares, as they also make further policy moves to cool the real-estate market more likely. Among individual housing names, shares of China Vanke Co. rose 1% in Shenzhen, and Gemdale Corp. gained 1.7% in Shanghai, but stock in Agile Property Holdings Ltd. dropped 1.7% in Hong Kong.

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Hong Kong stocks on Tuesday pulled back after a two-day rally amid uncertainty over the pace of the U.S. Federal Reserve's bond purchases, with Chinese property developers dropping after another strong monthly increase in home prices on the mainland. The Hang Seng Index dropped 0.8% to 21,039.02 and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gave up 1% to 9,645.56. Shares of each of the four largest Chinese banks dropped despite news that state-owned investment agency Central Huijin Investment Co. has increased stakes in them, with China Construction Bank Corp. losing 1.4% and Bank of China Ltd. shedding 1.5%. Among developers, China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd. fell 2.1% and China Resources Land Ltd. dropped 2.3%. The decline came on the heels of official data showing that home prices rose in 69 of 70 cities in May from the same month a year ago. China's Shanghai Composite was flat in choppy trade, after dropping in nine of the last 10 trading days.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- The Reserve Bank of Australia is ready to cut interest rates further if need be, according to the minutes from its June 4 meeting, released Tuesday. The RBA's policy board "judged that the inflation outlook as currently assessed might provide some scope for further easing, should that be required to support demand," the minutes said. The RBA left rates unchanged at the June meeting. The Australia's dollar slipped following the minutes' release, buying 95.26 U.S. cents, down from 95.40 cents just prior to the release.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) - Stocks in Australia fell early Tuesday, with investors waiting for word about possible future monetary policy moves from both the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Reserve Bank of Australia. The S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.4% at 4,806.70. Banking issues led sector losses, as shares of National Australia Bank Ltd. and Macquarie Group Ltd. fell by more than 1% each, and Commonwealth Bank of Australia shares dropped 0.9%. Woodside Petroleum Ltd. was among decliners in the energy group, with its shares lower by 1.2%. The Australian dollar bought 95.71 U.S. cents, up from 95.63 U.S. cents late Monday, before the RBA releases minutes from its meeting held earlier this month, when the key interest rate was left steady at 2.75%. The Fed later Tuesday will begin its two-day policy meeting, with investors looking for clarification on what's next for stimulus measures.