Asian stocks were up slightly in a cautious start to the week
on Monday, with investors holding out hopes that China would take steps to
stimulate the economy.
Monday, 31 March 2014
U.S.TREASURIES
U.S.
Treasuries yields rose on Friday as stocks gained, with yields of
intermediate-dated notes nearing two-month highs as many analysts and traders
see the debt as likely to continue to underperform longer-term bonds
U.S.STOCKS
U.S. stocks ended up on Friday but off their session highs as a late afternoon selloff in the biotechnology sector weighed on the overall market.
DOLLAR
The dollar traded at 102.87 yen, not far from Friday's
one-week peak of 102.98, while the euro briefly touched a one-week high of
141.74. The kiwi rose as far as 89.23 yen, a level not seen since November
2007.
YEN
The yen stayed on the defensive early on Monday, reaching a
fresh six-year low on the New Zealand dollar as demand for the safe-haven
currency waned amid hopes of more stimulus from China.
U.S.CRUDE
U.S. crude for May delivery edged down 22 cents to $101.45 a
barrel by 0004 GMT after settling on Friday at the highest since March 7.
Front-month prices are set to close the month down about 1 percent although
prices gained about 3 percent in the first quarter.
BRENT CRUDE
Brent crude traded near a two-week high at above $107 a
barrel on Monday as simmering tensions between Russia and the West offset a
rise in oil supply from OPEC's second largest producer Iraq.
OIL
Oil condensate flows from Libya's Wafa field to the western
Mellitah port are still blocked, while gas exports to Italy are flowing
normally, state-run National Oil Corp (NOC) said. Nigerian crude exports are
set to fall to their lowest since 2009 due to a production outage for the
Forcados grade.
COPPER
Copper bottomed at three and a half year lows on March 19
and has since steadily gained steam as worries eased over slowing growth and
bankruptcies at commodity companies.
PLATINUM
Among other precious metals, platinum rose nearly 1 percent
on Monday as labour strikes continued in top producer South Africa.
SPOT GOLD
Spot gold was up slightly by 0.2 percent to $1,295.90 an
ounce by 0312 GMT, but remained not far from a six-week low of $1,285.34 hit on
Friday.
GOLD
Gold traded below $1,300 an ounce on Monday, near a six-week
low, and could face more pressure from weak physical demand in Asia and growing
optimism about the U.S. economy.
U.S.MARKET UPDATE
U.S. stocks ended up on Friday but off their session highs as a late afternoon selloff in the biotechnology sector weighed on the overall market.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 58.83 points or 0.36 percent, to end at 16,323.06. The S&P 500 gained 8.58 points or 0.46 percent, to finish at 1,857.62. The Nasdaq Composite added 4.526 points or 0.11 percent, to close at 4,155.759.
Thursday, 27 March 2014
ASIAN STOCKS
Asian markets got off to a skittish start following a late
dip on Wall Street amid talk of tougher sanctions on Russia and a drop in
technology stocks.
U.S.STOCKS
US stocks fell on Wednesday, led by losses in the technology and materials sectors, as geopolitical concerns rose after the United States and the European Union agreed to work together on tougher sanctions on Russia.
U.S.TREASURIES
U.S. Treasury debt prices extended gains on Wednesday after
the government sold $35 billion in new five-year notes amid very strong demand
from fund managers and other investors.
NIKKEI
The Nikkei share average fell 1.4 percent to 14,268.28,
closing in on this month's low of 14,203.21, marked on March 17, though about
half of the losses were due to the effect of many shares going ex-dividend.
FTSE
The FTSE 100 index, which at one stage rose as much as 0.6
percent, ended up by just 0.41 points, flat in percentage terms, at 6,605.30
points.
U.S.CRUDE
while U.S. crude CLc1, known as West Texas Intermediate or
WTI, rose $1.07 to settle at $100.26 a barrel.
OIL
Oil stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma storage hub, the
delivery point for U.S. crude futures fell 1.33 million barrels to 28.48
million barrels.
LME COPPER
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange had climbed
by 0.3 percent to $6,533.25 a tonne by 0108 GMT, paring losses from the
previous session.
COPPER
London copper firmed on Thursday, underpinned by hopes of
stimulus steps in China, but investors remained alert for further signs of
stress in China's bond or property markets that could flag a drop in demand for
copper.
U.S.GOLD
U.S. COMEX gold futures for April delivery settled down $8
an ounce at $1,303.40, with trading volume about 10 percent above its 30-day
average, preliminary Reuters data showed.
SPDR GOLD
SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded
fund, said its holdings fell 1.80 tonnes to 816.97 tonnes on Wednesday.
SPOT GOLD
Spot gold was up 0.2 percent at $1,305.60 an ounce by 0016
GMT. The metal hit $1,298.29 in the previous session - its lowest since Feb.
13.
GOLD
Gold moved up slightly on Thursday, stepping away from a
six-week low as the metal's safe-haven appeal was boosted by weaker equities.
U.S.MARKET UPDATE
US stocks fell on Wednesday, led by losses in the technology and materials sectors, as geopolitical concerns rose after the United States and the European Union agreed to work together on tougher sanctions on Russia.
The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 98.89 points, or 0.60 percent, to end at 16,268.99. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropped 13.06 points, or 0.70 percent, to finish at 1,852.56. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 60.69 points, or 1.43 percent, to close at 4,173.58.
Tuesday, 25 March 2014
ASIAN STOCKS
Asian shares were in a defensive mode on Tuesday after Wall
Street fell overnight, though still-vague hopes of a new stimulus plan in China
could improve investor sentiment.
U.S.STOCKS
U.S. stocks fell on
Monday, with some of the market's recent best performers like technology and
biotech shares leading the way down. Concerns that the crisis in Ukraine could escalate
gave investors a reason to drop some of the market's biggest trading
favourites.
U.S.TREASURIES
The U.S. Treasuries yield curve flattened on Monday, with
long-dated debt prices gaining while intermediate-dated debt prices pared
losses, before the U.S. government sells $96 billion in new debt to investors
nervous that the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates sooner than expected.
U.S.DOLLAR
The U.S. dollar nursed broad losses early on Tuesday, having
come under pressure late in New York as investors bought the euro and drove the
Australian dollar to its highest this year.
FTSE
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended 0.6 percent lower at
6,520.39 points, falling for nine of the past 12 trading sessions. It has lost
more than 4 percent this month.
NIKKEI
The benchmark Nikkei shed 0.2 percent to 14,442.88, trading
below its 200-day moving average of 14,509.71. It soared 1.8 percent on Monday.
BRENT CRUDE
Brent crude for May fell 11 cents to settle at $106.81 a
barrel. The oil benchmark fell for a fourth straight week last week.
LME COPPER
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was steady
at $6,475 a tonne by 0121 GMT after closing the previous session little
changed.
COPPER
London copper was treading water on Tuesday, with hopes of
economic stimulus by Beijing providing a floor for prices after a survey showed
that growth in the country's factories slowed for a fifth month in March.
SPDR GOLD
SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded
fund, said its holdings rose 0.55 percent to 821.47 tonnes on Monday from
816.97 tonnes on Friday.
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