Amid Europe Freeze

Asian shares tumbled on Friday and were set for their worst weekly showing since September, amid political turmoil in Greece and signs of growing instability in Spanish banks, with investors adding the latest weak U.S. data to the list of risk factors. Assets across the board, from commodities such as oil and gold to riskier currencies such as the euro and the Australian dollar were all heading for their weekly losses. Financial stocks were hammered after the head of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ.AX) said volatile conditions in global markets have caused the wholesale funding market for Australian banks to freeze again, a worrying echo of the global financial crisis. European shares were also set to fall, with financial spreadbetters predicting that major European markets ...

The Week Ahead Highlights FOMC minutes and US labour market in focus More QE for the UK Spain and other sovereign concerns RBA to hold for now Market Moves FOMC minutes and US labour market in focus The past week has seen a multitude of Fed speakers express their views on the economic outlook and monetary policy. Voting members Bernanke, Lacker, Lockhart, Duke, and Dudley all delivered speeches as well as non-voters Plosser, Fisher, and Rosengren. The main focus was on Chairman Bernanke who reiterated his concern that the economic recovery is "slower than we would have hoped" and that "the job market remains far from normal". The Fed Chairman noted the benefits of continued accommodation and kept open the option for further easing. Markets will look to the release ...

Fundamental Analysis EUR 17-nation currency slipped against most of its peers before Greece's PM Papademos meets with politicians from three leading parties as officials still cannot agree on debt reduction plan. The meeting scheduled on Tuesday. Greece representatives and creditors still have to agree on EUR 600 million of fiscal measures for this year. Euro declined 0.2% to USD 1.3109 in London trade. Currently EUR/USD is trading at USD 1.3116. USD US President Obama ordered to freeze all Iran's central bank and governments assets deposited in US or in any overseas branch of US entity, announced the White House today. President Obama claimed Iran current activities to be a serious threat to international financial system. Before the order, only assets owned by sanctioned Iranian ...

Fundamental Analysis EUR "There is at least still sufficient demand for goods ‘made in Germany’ to keep the industrial engine running in 2012" - Carsten Brzeski, senior economist at ING Group German factory orders increased more than expected in December as demand from overseas helped the euro zone’s largest economy to weather the debt crisis. Orders rose 1.7 per cent, after declining 4.9 per cent in November, said the Economy Ministry on Monday. USD "You wonder when people are going to look beyond Greece to the real issue, which is Italy" - Jeffrey Sica, president and CIO of Sica Wealth Management U.S. stocks declined on Monday, snapping a three-day winning streak, after the meeting of euro zone ministers was postponed because of Greek reluctance to commit to reforms. GBP "If the UK ...

(Reuters) - Brent crude held steady above $111 on Friday with investors betting oil demand would grow as Europe's funding worries ease amid supply concerns over Iran's tensions with the West. Yet gains were capped as gasoline demand in the world's biggest consumer, the United States, fell to its lowest in a more than a decade because high pump prices limited road travel. The latest numbers out of China showing manufacturers started 2012 in a sluggish mode also weighed on the market. Brent crude gained 39 cents to $111.94 a barrel by 0435 GMT. The benchmark is poised to gain 1 percent this week, paring some of last week's 2.4 percent loss. U.S. February crude, which expires later in the day, gained 11 cents to $100.50. The contract is poised to gain 1.8 percent this week. "There is some ...

The last couple weeks were wrapped in bright economic reports from the U.S economy, but truthfully, the weekly jobless claims were too good to be true, particularly after we watched the number of Americans filing for unemployment insurances falling by 19 thousand to 366 thousand in the week ended December 10, the lowest level since May 2008, while the four-week average was lower by 6.5 thousand to 387.75 thousand, the lowest since July 2008. Figures from the U.S Department of Labor may show that that initial jobless claims for the week December 17 week gained about 12 thousand to 380 thousand, while the continuing claims for the December 10 week may have added a slender 3 thousand to 3600 thousand, for sure, the labor markets are still battling to seek full stability though unemployment ...

(Reuters) - World stocks and commodities tumbled on Thursday as weak data from China crystallized investor fears of a global recession one day after a grim economic outlook from the U.S. Federal Reserve. Stocks tumbled more than 4 percent and commodities took a beating. The U.S. dollar climbed to a seven-month high against major currencies .DXY as investors fled risky assets. Weak data from Germany and China helped push investors to the safety of U.S. government bonds, where benchmark yields again touched lows not seen in 60 years. Data showing contraction in China's manufacturing sector for a third straight month helped drive down oil prices by more than 4 percent in London and sent the price of copper to a one-year low. Gold, a traditional safe haven, slumped more than 3 percent as ...

(Reuters) - Asian stocks, U.S. index futures and the euro fell on Wednesday as investors remained unconvinced that euro zone leaders have a coherent plan to tackle the bloc's sovereign debt problems, which many fear could trigger a new banking crisis. Global markets have been roiled since the end of July by the twin fears of renewed recession in the United States and Europe's protracted debt woes, which have seen Greece, Ireland and Portugal forced to take bailouts and piled bond market pressure on Italy and Spain. "Some of the European banks may have to recapitalize their balance sheets with government assistance. It's creating a lot of nervousness and uncertainty," said Simon Bonouvrie, portfolio manager at Platypus Asset Management in Sydney. Oil eased after the International Energy ...

Previous session overview Stock market declines around the globe sent the safe-haven yen higher and the euro lower in Asian trading Friday, with no signs that the equities sell-off was running out of steam. Asian markets fell sharply after Wall Street tumbled 3.7% on Thursday amid heightened concerns about U.S. growth and the potential for a credit freeze in Europe. The Nikkei Stock Average lost 2.2% in the morning session. FX trading was relatively subdued, however. The dollar fell to JPY76.50 as of 0300 GMT from JPY76.57 in late New York trade. The euro fell to USD1.4327 from USD1.4334, and JPY109.60 from JPY109.75. The dollar was at CHF0.7940 from CHF0.7941. The European woes come amid growing concerns the U.S. economy is headed back into recession. Overnight, the Philadelphia ...