Shaw Capital Management News -Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 4

Prospects therefore remain disappointing, and are being made worse by the differences that exist between member countries. The European Central Bank therefore faces a difficult situation. It continues to forecast “moderate” growth and “moderate” inflation; but it is being severely criticised for failing to address the problems of a two-speed economy, and for its unwillingness so far to face the threat that the deteriorating situation in Greece could quickly begin to destabilise other member countries and have serious consequences for the financial stability and growth prospects of the entire area.

It is not surprising therefore that investors and speculators have started to reduce their exposure to the euro.

Shaw Capital Management News - Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 4: - The critical question therefore is whether the fall of the euro is now over. Since the currency is unlikely to receive any real support from the general background situation in the euro-zone, everything depends on the developing debt situation, and particularly on the situation in Greece; and also on the possibility of support operations from stronger member countries and from the European Central Bank, and the European Commission. The situation remains uncertain. The central bank appears to be reluctant to offer help, and the German government, which might have been expected to become involved, has also made no response so far.

Shaw Capital Management News - But the European Commission has endorsed the latest plans by the Greek government to introduce an across-the-board freeze on public sector wages and cuts in allowances that are expected to reduce the overall public sector wage bill by around 4%.

This may encourage support from elsewhere; however the Commission has warned that it will not tolerate any slippage from the target and will if necessary demand tougher action from the government to ensure that it stays on course.

But it is far from clear that the Greek government can obtain the necessary support in parliament even for the present proposed measures, and so the uncertainty will continue.

It is therefore likely that there will be further falls in the euro over the coming weeks.

Sterling has improved slightly over the past month, helped by the weakness of the euro.

Shaw Capital Management News - The background situation in the UK remains unattractive, and there have already been threats that its AAA credit rating is at risk unless there are credible measures to reduce the massive fiscal deficit after the forthcoming general election is over.

Shaw Capital Management News - Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 4: - The European Central Bank therefore faces a difficult situation. It continues to forecast “moderate” growth and “moderate” inflation; but it is being severely criticised for failing to address the problems of a two-speed economy, and for its unwillingness so far to face the threat that the deteriorating situation in Greece could quickly begin to destabilize other member countries and have serious consequences for the financial stability and growth prospects of the entire area.

But the UK is not constrained by membership of the European single currency system, and so there is no immediate risk of a default on its sovereign debts.

It has therefore been able to benefit from the problems affecting some other European countries.

Shaw Capital Management News - Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 4: - The latest figures from the Office of National Statistics indicate that the UK just managed to move out of recession in the final quarter of last year. The estimate of growth of only 0.1% in the quarter was a considerable disappointment, and it is expected that it will be revised higher; but clearly the economy is not performing very well.

Government spending remains strong, and there was a surge in retail sales in the run-up to Christmas; but the anecdotal evidence suggests that consumers became much more cautious again in January.

The latest meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England was concerned by the poor reaction so far to the dramatic measures that have been introduced to counter the recession, and reacted to this situation by leaving UK base rates unchanged once again at 0.5%.

Shaw Capital Management News - Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 4: - It clearly has no intention of moving to an “exit strategy” until there is convincing evidence that a sustainable recovery in the economy is underway.

It did announce that purchases of market securities under the quantitative easing programme would now be discontinued after the £200 billion target has been reached; but its main priority is to continue to provide support for the fragile economic recovery.

Fiscal policy is also likely to remain unchanged until after the election, because the necessary measures to reduce the huge deficit will be unpopular, and might influence the outcome of that election.

Sterling is therefore receiving no real support from the domestic background situation, and in other circumstances might have been expected to move lower.

Shaw Capital Management News - Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 4: - But the problems affecting the other major global currencies, and particularly the problems affecting the euro, have at least delayed any further falls. The yen has improved over the past month, despite a generally unfavourable domestic background situation, and some attempts by the Japanese authorities to prevent its appreciation against other currencies.

It has achieved an enhanced “safe haven” status in the current storm in the currency markets, and on the back of the relative success of its exports. But conditions in the Japanese economy remain very weak, and there has even been the threat of a downgrade of its credit rating unless measures are introduced to reduce its massive fiscal deficit.

However it does not appear that this threat will prevent the new Japanese government from introducing further measures to stimulate the economy, and urging the Bank of Japan to intervene in the markets to weaken the yen, and so its prospects remain very uncertain.

Shaw Acquires Coastal Planning & Engineering, Inc.

Acquisition Expands Company's Water Resources and Ports and Harbors Expertise

BATON ROUGE, La., Mar 08, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) today announced it has acquired Coastal Planning & Engineering Inc. (CPE), a leader in coastal engineering and restoration, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $26 million.

Based in Boca Raton, Fla., CPE's full range of services includes coastal modeling, oceanographic measurements, marine biology, geotechnical surveys, hydrographic surveys and marine geology. CPE's 27-year history of coastal projects includes beach nourishment and island restoration following hurricanes and other erosion, offshore sand inventory and ship maneuvering studies for new and existing ports.

The company has worked with Shaw on multiple coastal engineering projects, including the most recent sand berm project for the state of Louisiana. Additionally, this acquisition includes a presence in Brazil for Shaw, which can accommodate the country's needed coastal restoration, port redevelopment and expansion, as well as oil and gas development.

"The acquisition of Coastal Planning & Engineering positions Shaw as a clear leader in coastal restoration services," said George Bevan, president of Shaw's Environmental & Infrastructure Group. "Our existing project management capabilities and ports and harbors expertise, now combined with CPE's coastal engineering services, allow Shaw to capitalize on multiple opportunities, including restoration of the Gulf Coast, port expansions and offshore energy support globally."

Shaw's own coastal experience includes strategic planning, design, construction and project monitoring in various coastal terrains, including Louisiana and Florida. Currently, Shaw is leading the largest design-build civil works project ever awarded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal Surge Barrier in New Orleans. The massive barrier is a key component in the Corps' Hurricane and Storm Damage Risk Reduction System, which is intended to provide 100-year storm-surge protection for the greater New Orleans area when completed. Shaw also provided expertise in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill with the creation of sand berms off the coast of Louisiana, the largest coastal sand barrier project in U.S. history.

The transaction, which is subject to post-closing adjustments, was completed in Shaw's third quarter of fiscal year 2011.

The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) is a leading global provider of engineering, construction, technology, fabrication, remediation and support services for clients in the energy, chemicals, environmental, infrastructure and emergency response industries. A Fortune 500 company with fiscal year 2010 annual revenues of $7 billion, Shaw has approximately 27,000 employees around the world and is the power sector industry leader according to Engineering News-Record's list of Top 500 Design Firms. For more information, please visit Shaw's website at www.shawgrp.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements and information about our current and future prospects, operations and financial results, which are based on currently available information. Actual future results and financial performance could vary significantly from those anticipated in such statements.

Among the factors that could cause future events or transactions to differ from those we expect are those risks discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2010, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended February 28, 2010, May 31, 2010 and November 30, 2010, and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Please read our "Risk Factors" and other cautionary statements contained in these filings. Our current expectations may not be realized as a result of, among other things:

•             Changes in our clients' financial conditions, including their capital spending;

•             Our ability to obtain new contracts and meet our performance obligations;

•             Client contract cancellations or modifications to contract scope;

•             Worsening global economic conditions;

•             Changes to the regulatory environment;

•             Litigation or arbitration decisions;

•             Failure to achieve projected backlog.

As a result of these risks and others, actual results could vary significantly from those anticipated in this presentation, and our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, the occurrence of certain events or otherwise.

SOURCE: The Shaw Group Inc.

Media and Financial Contact:

The Shaw Group Inc.

Gentry Brann, 225-987-7372

gentry.brann@shawgrp.com

Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 3: Shaw Capital Management

The recent State of the Union message to Congress by President Obama included a request for the approval of a further fiscal stimulus package this year amounting to around $100 billion to help to tackle the unemployment problem, and he has also presented a $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2011 that is likely to maintain the overall deficit around the $1.35 trillion level expected this year.

Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 3: Shaw Capital Management - Much will depend on the attitude of overseas holders, and especially on the attitude of the Chinese and Japanese authorities. For the present they seem to be prepared to maintain and even increase their dollar exposure; and if this continues, and the problems of other major currencies remain unresolved, it should be enough to allow the dollar to “improve”. The euro struggled to recover in the early part of January from the big fall that occurred in December; but the recovery did not last very long, and it has subsequently fallen sharply again, to leave it value against the dollar around 10% below the level in early- December.

There has been no significant change in the underlying economic background, although there is some evidence that the fragile recovery that was developing is losing some momentum.

Foreign Exchange Markets 2010 Part 3: Shaw Capital Management Korea - But there has been a serious deterioration in the financial background as the fears have increased that Greece and some other periphery countries in the euro-zone may be unable to fund their massive fiscal deficits, and service their sovereign debts. There is also considerable uncertainty about the intentions of the European Central Bank and the stronger countries if conditions continue to worsen, and so overseas holders have started to withdraw funds from the European capital markets to await developments.

The present lack of urgency at the central bank and amongst the key politicians suggests that this trend will continue, and that the euro will fall still further; but there is still some hope that the seriousness of the situation will finally produce a support operation that will ease the situation.

Shaw Capital Management News - All the available evidence continues to point to a slow, two-speed recovery in the euro-zone economy. Germany and France appear to be performing reasonably well, although there are some signs of slowdown in Germany; but Greece, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, and even Italy are struggling to escape from recession, and are expected to keep overall output in the euro-zone this year around the 1% level.

Shaw Capital Management News - There is also considerable uncertainty about the intentions of the European Central Bank and the stronger countries if conditions continue to worsen, and so overseas holders have started to withdraw funds from the European capital markets to await developments.

Retail sales remain depressed, and fell by 1.2% between October and November to reflect the continuing caution of consumers; and industrial orders in Germany rose by much less than expected in November, after a very disappointing result in October, to indicate some weakness in export prospects that had been expected to provide significant momentum to the economy.

Shaw Capital Management: Debit Policy is Working Well in UK & US Part 1 of 2

World wide recovery appears to have firmed up. In the UK the statistics have lagged behind the anecdotal signs of the same thing. No one still believes the ONS’s peculiar decision to call a revised GDP drop of 0.2% in the third quarter (now revised down from an initial estimate of 0.4%). The UK now have not merely surveys of purchasing managers but also employment, production and retail sales figures, all of which suggest that the economy levelled off in the third quarter and could have possibly also

started expanding then, and was definitely expanding in the fourth. The most troubling aspect of the recovery in western economies including the UK is the lack of credit growth to the non-bank private sector. However, this has been accompanied by a general easing in monetary conditions, as

measured by other indicators, such as rates of interest on corporate loans and bonds, and the cost of equity capital.

Shaw Capital Management Korea: Debit Policy is Working Well in UK & US - So it appears that the policy easing carried out by virtually all western central banks has succeeded in offsetting at least much of the effects of the credit crunch created by the banking crisis.

Another feature has been the willingness of western governments to allow their budget balances to move into heavy deficit.

The way to think of this is that governments will eventually have to pay off these deficits by either cutting spending services to the private sector or raising taxes on it. Hence these deficits are loans to the private sector to perform current services or avoid collecting current taxes; these loans will be paid off in the future. The government is effectively giving credit to the private sector that has dried up through the usual channels.

Shaw Capital Management Korea: Debit Policy is Working Well in UK & US - Some people would like to debate whether such government deficits are effective in supporting the economy; however it should be obvious that in a credit crunch all credit provision is likely to be effective in offsetting the credit shortage. One can agree that in normal times deficit multipliers could well be low because rational consumers will work out that they must pay future taxes to pay for the deficits and hence they may well save in response, so offsetting the direct deficit stimulus.

However in a credit crunch this argument is irrelevant because the private sector is liquidity-constrained. So monetary and fiscal policy have both been dominated by the need to provide a substitute for bank credit. They have done so and been rather effective in this.

Shaw Capital Management Korea: Debit Policy is Working Well in UK & US - As long as the recovery does not raise inflation and require interest rates to rise, and money creation to be stopped and reversed, the government deficits have been costless because financed by money creation at zero interest rate therefore.

The burning question is when is the turning point, when ‘monetary exit’ must be started, turning these deficits into expensive processes that could violate sustainability conditions, and hence precipitating the necessity of fiscal exit also.

From the UK or US perspective there is no real reason to rush to the exit.  Both countries’ public debt/GDP ratios are quite low, in the region of 50 80% respectively. There is no history of outright default, or of refusal to pay taxes. The main issue concerns the possibility of using inflation as a partial default tool.

Shaw Capital Management Korea: Debit Policy is Working Well in UK & US - In the UK there has been a formal inflation target of 2% or so for 17 years; in the US there is no formal target but a widespread assumption encouraged by the Fed that there effectively is one of the same order. Since debt has been issued over a long period on the assumption of such a target, the gain to the Treasury from a burst of inflation would be large; it would act like a windfall tax on bond investors.

For example to reduce the debt/GDP ratio in the UK back to 40% from its current level of 56% would just require four years of inflation at 6%, only 4% over the target.

Shaw Capital Management Korea: Debit Policy is Working Well in UK & US - Tempting as this might sound, it is striking how little public interest there is in it. Inflation was highly unpopular in both countries when it was out of control in the 1970s and early 1980s; inflation targeting has proved politically successfu