Euro edges up but vulnerable in thin summer trade
The euro edged higher against the dollar on Monday in quiet summer trade as uncertainty about the scope of possible European Central Bank action to contain the region's debt crisis had investors wary of placing large bets. Speculation the ECB will restart its bond-buying program to bring down the borrowing costs of Spain and Italy has helped the euro rise from an over two-year low of $1.2040 hit in late July, but the single currency has been highly susceptible to bouts of selling since then.
The euro earlier slipped after the ECB brushed aside a report in Germany's Der Spiegel magazine that it was considering setting yield thresholds for any moves to buy the bonds of the euro zone's struggling sovereign debtors.
The euro rose 0.1 percent to $1.2342, nearer to the session peak of $1.2368 than the session low of $1.2293 , though it stayed within the $1.2240-1.2450 trading range seen in recent weeks.
Against the yen, the euro fell 0.1 percent to 97.96 yen , but it hovered near a six-week high of 98.40 yen hit on Friday.
The dollar was down 0.2 percent at 79.38 yen , after having hit a five-week high of 79.66 yen in early Asian trade. Despite the recent move, analysts said the dollar should continue to gain from improvements in U.S. economic data that have lifted Treasury debt yields.
Wall St flat after rally; Apple biggest company ever
U.S. stocks were flat on Monday on signs of fatigue after a six-week run of gains as the European Central Bank quelled speculation about the form of market intervention that may be taken to stem the region's debt crisis. Despite the lethargic trading, Apple Inc shares hit a new high, becoming the most valuable public company of all time, with the combined value of its shares exceeding a previous record set by Microsoft. Shares closed up 2.6 percent to $665.15.
The S&P 500 remains close to a four-year high, rising nearly 5 percent in the past six weeks. Investors had been waiting for the ECB to take steps to control the euro crisis in September. Last week, the index broke away from the 1,400 level where it had stalled for much of August.
German magazine Der Spiegel said over the weekend the ECB is considering setting interest rate thresholds for any purchases of a struggling euro zone country's bonds. A bank spokesman said it was misleading to report on decisions that still had not been taken.
Germany's central bank, the Bundesbank, also reiterated its opposition to bond purchases. A spokesman for the German Finance Ministry said it was not aware of any plans for the ECB to target bond spreads. Facebook Inc shares briefly fell more than 50 percent from its issue price to hit a new low of $18.75. The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> shed 3.48 points, or 0.03 percent, to 13,271.72. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> dipped 0.07 points, or 0.00 percent, to 1,418.09. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> lost 0.38 points, or 0.01 percent, to 3,076.21.
Platinum hits 2-month high on S.Africa supply fear
Platinum prices jumped nearly 2 percent on Monday, hitting a two-month high after deadly violence at a mine in top producer South Africa triggered heavy speculative buying on supply worries. Bullion prices edged up as trading volume for U.S. gold futures was on track to hit a 2012 low, while silver jumped almost 3 percent as platinum's rally triggered short-covering.
Investors bought platinum on worries that mines in South Africa may produce less of the metal after 44 people were killed during a strike at the Marikana mine owned by Lonmin , which accounts for 12 percent of global platinum output. The metal soared 7 percent in the past three sessions, bringing its year-to-date gain to 7 percent, which means platinum has outperformed gold, silver and copper so far in 2012.
Spot gold was down 0.3 percent at $1,620.74 an ounce by 3:03 p.m. EDT (1903 GMT).
U.S. December gold futures for December delivery settled up $3.60 an ounce at $1,623.
Oil Holds Near Three-Month High as Europe Discusses Debt
Oil in New York was little changed near a three-month high amid concern that European leaders will fail to calm the region’s sovereign debt crisis and as the dollar slipped against the euro. Futures fell for the first time in five days after Germany’s Bundesbank stepped up criticism of the European Central Bank’s plan to embark on potentially “unlimited†government bond purchases. Europe’s leaders plan a week of shuttle diplomacy to help resolve the situation. The dollar weakened against the euro for the second time in three days.
“The market is rather listless,†said Addison Armstrong, director of market research at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. “There’s not any news that’s going to move the market strongly in either direction. Crude oil for September delivery fell 4 cents to settle at $95.97 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In intraday trading, the contract reached $96.53, the highest level since May 11. September oil expires tomorrow. The more actively traded October contract declined 6 cents to $96.26.
Brent oil for October
settlement dropped 1 cent to settle at $113.70 on the London-based ICE
Futures Europe exchange. The European benchmark grade’s premium to
West Texas Intermediate crude traded in New York rose 5 cents to $17.44.
Nikkei seen rangebound after 3-month high amid ECB uncertainty
Nikkei seen rangebound after 3-month high amid ECB uncertainty
Japan's Nikkei share average is expected to tread in range on Tuesday after hitting a three-month high the previous day, as the European Central Bank quashed speculation about the form of its bond-buying programme to combat the region's debt crisis.
Expectations that the ECB would take bold action to tackle the euro zone sovereign debt crisis have helped the Nikkei rebound 10 percent from a seven-week low touched on July 25. The Nikkei is up 8.5 percent so far this year.
But the market is still awaiting further details of the ECB's plans, and there are signs of fatigue after the sharp run-up. U.S. stocks were flat overnight, although Apple Inc shares hit a new high, becoming the most valuable public company of all time.
The Nikkei <.N225> is likely to trade between 9,150 and 9,250, strategists said. Nikkei futures in Chicago <0#NIY:> closed at 9,190 on Monday, unchanged from the Osaka close. On Monday, the benchmark inched up 0.1 percent to 9,171.16, hitting a three-month closing high for the second straight session and breaking above its 26-week moving average at 9,150.04. The broader Topix <.TOPX> slipped 0.2 percent to 764.66 in thin trade on Monday, with the fourth lowest volume this year.
Seoul shares seen steady; ECB coy on intervention
Seoul shares are expected to start little changed on Tuesday, with investors awaiting further clues about any action from the European Central Bank (ECB) to ease the region's fiscal crisis. An ECB spokesman downplayed reports from German magazine Der Spiegel that the bank was planning to set a cap on bond yields above which it would buy government debt issued by member states. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) <.KS11> ticked 0.01 percent lower to close at 1,946.31 points on Monday.
Expectations that the ECB will step in to ease crippling borrowing costs in Spain and Italy have taken the KOSPI to a string of three-month highs in August, until signs of fatigue brought the rally to a halt since last Friday.
Hong Kong shares seen higher, CNOOC, Belle earnings eyed
Hong Kong shares may edge up on Tuesday, but gains are seen capped at resistance that have bounded the Hang Seng Index for the past two weeks, with investors' focus likely trained mainly on corporate earnings, Chinese oil giant CNOOC Ltd <0883.HK>, China-focused footwear distributor Belle International <1880.HK> and China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group <1101.HK> are among companies expected to post their second-quarter results.
On Monday, the Hang Seng Index <.HSI> edged down 0.06 percent to 20,104.27, paring midday losses to return above the 20,000-point level. Chart resistance is seen at around 20,300, which has capped gains on the benchmark index for more than two weeks.
Turnover neared 2012 lows, but short selling interest stayed high. Shorts accounted for 11 percent of total turnover on Monday, above the historical 8 percent average. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan's Nikkei <.N225> was down 0.1 percent, while South Korea's KOSPI <.KS11> was up 0.4 percent at 0045 GMT.
Source : Reuters
