As Markets Bay

The euro fell to a near four-month low on Monday as political turmoil gripped Greece, highlighting the risk the country may exit the euro zone, while worries about slowing Chinese and global growth drove down higher-yielding currencies. Safe-haven currencies including the dollar and the Japanese yen rose as coalition talks in Greece hit an impasse on Sunday, increasing the chance of another election. Euro zone industrial production unexpectedly fell in March, adding to signs the bloc is heading into recession and further fuelling bearish sentiment, while Spain's short-term debt costs rose at auction and its 10-year yields soared. The common currency fell to $1.2861 on trading platform EBS, its lowest level since January 23. It has lost 2.7 percent so far this month after losing 0.8 ...

Gold eased on Monday after elections in France and Greece at the weekend reflected strong anti-austerity feeling and raised concerns over the euro zone's ability to battle its debt crisis, knocking the euro to a three-month low versus the dollar. Greek voters in particular rejected the austerity-for-aid policies that have shielded the country from bankruptcy and a euro exit, dealing a serious blow to the euro zone's fragile political consensus on debt. Assets seen as higher risk, like stocks and commodities, came under pressure along with the euro. European stocks slumped to 4-1/2 month lows, Brent crude oil fell to its lowest since January, and safe-haven German Bund futures hit record highs. Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,639.60 an ounce at 0942 GMT, having earlier dropped as ...

(Reuters) - The euro zone economy worsened markedly last month and U.S. employers cut back on hiring, according to two reports on Friday that dampened hopes for gradual recovery on either side of the Atlantic. In Europe, the purchasing managers indexes (PMIs), which primarily cover services, suggested a recession across the continent's currency union could now extend to mid-year and be deeper than previously thought. The gloomy surveys clashed with the picture painted by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, who on Thursday spoke of a gradual recovery taking place in the euro zone during the course of the year - although he did speak about risks. In the United States, a government report showed employers added a disappointing 115,000 workers to payrolls last month and, ...

(Reuters) - In a ramshackle township in northwest China's Shaanxi province, red Communist Party banners call on a nearby steel mill's workers to seek "progress" and avoid making "backward steps". The slogans demonstrate the hybrid nature of China's floundering steel sector, which as it tries to serve the twin masters of the state and the market has seen margins plummet and racked up a mountain of debt. Beijing's attempts to tackle the problems by forcing lumbering state-owned mills to consolidate or push up the value chain look likely to aggravate rather than solve the problems of a sector that accounts for 3-4 percent of China's GDP. An obvious solution - to allow the worst performers to go out of business - seems unlikely in an industry identified by Chairman Mao Zedong nearly half a ...

The last 24 hours have heaped even more pressure on Madrid. First there was Standard & Poor's two notch rating downgrade for Spain from A to BBB+ with a negative outlook. Second, was a further deterioration in the unemployment rate in the first quarter. S&P's rationale for the downgrade was down to 1, the possibility that the government will need to provide further fiscal support to the banking sector and 2, the deterioration in the budget deficit trajectory for 2011-2015. S&P also mentioned the significant risks to Spain's economic growth, which could weigh on the country's creditworthiness. Spain now has the same rating as Ireland after S&P affirmed Ireland's rating at BBB+ with a negative outlook. It sounded fairly impressed with the Irish government's 'proactive and substantive' ...

With the end of the first round of the French elections, Hollande seems to be in a stronger position than his conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy who collected around 27.0% of the total votes in the first round, slightly behind the socialist candidate Francois Hollande, who gained 28.2% of the first round votes. More than four fifths of the votes were counted, according to the Interior Ministry. Therefore, both candidates are to meet in a head-to-head confrontation on May 5 in a decider that might be more difficult than already projected. Unexpectedly, Le Pen recorded 18.6% of the total votes, coming in the third place after Sarkozy, beating Jean-Luc Melenchon who scored 10.9% and Francois Bayrou who collected 9.2%. After the results Hollande told a crowd of supporters that "My final ...

(Reuters) - Gold prices clung onto early gains on Thursday, ending four days of losses after a widely-anticipated auction of Spanish debt supported the euro and appetite for so-called higher-risk assets like stocks and commodities. Prices remained range bound, however, as yields ticked higher on the longer dated paper than in a previous auction in January, with the precious metal failing to build on a session high touched in the immediate wake of the sale. Spot gold was up 0.1 percent at $1,643.70 an ounce at 6:01 a.m. EDT (1001 GMT), while U.S. gold futures for June delivery were up $4.90 an ounce at $1,644.50. Spain's Treasury issued 2.5 billion euros ($3.3 billion) in 2- and 10-year bonds on Thursday, at the top end of the targeted amount and on solid demand. "There was a very good ...

Fresh RRR cut chatter coming from China officials; Shirakawa commits to powerful easing if needed for Japan Economic Data (JP) JAPAN MAR MERCHANDISE TRADE BALANCE TOTAL: -¥82.6B V -¥223BE; ADJ MERCHANDISE TRADE BALANCE: -¥621B V -¥446BE (multi-year low) (BR) BRAZIL CENTRAL BANK (COPOM) CUTS SELIC TARGET RATE BY 75BPS TO 9.00%; AS EXPECTED (2nd consecutive 75BPS cut) (NZ) NEW ZEALAND Q1 CONSUMER PRICES (CPI) Q/Q: 0.5% V 0.5%E (3-quarter high); Y/Y: 1.6% V 1.6%E (KR) SOUTH KOREA MAR DEPARTMENT STORE SALES Y/Y: 1.6% V 2.9% PRIOR; DISCOUNT STORE SALES Y/Y: +3.2% V -6.4% PRIOR (AU) AUSTRALIA MAR RBA FOREIGN EXCHANGE TRANSACTIONS (A$): 944.0M V 372M PRIOR (AU) AUSTRALIA Q1 NAB BUSINESS CONFIDENCE: -1 V 1 PRIOR (NZ) NEW ZEALAND MAR ANZ NZ JOB ADS M/M: -1.0% V 4.6% PRIOR (JP) Japan investors ...

Asian stocks rebounded on Wednesday, where the MSCI Asia Pacific Index advanced 1.2% at 12:50 in Tokyo, heading for its biggest gain this month, after the IMF raised its global growth forecast and Spain’s auction eased debt worries. The International Monetary Fund raised its global growth forecast to 3.5% this year and 4.1% in 2013 compared with 3.3% for 2012 and 4.0% for 2013 expected in January, boosting the earning outlook for companies around Asia. The improved activity in the US, which is expected to grow2.1% this year and 2.4% in 2013, and the stabilization of Europe’s debt crisis due to the tougher policies are reducing the threats of a sharp slowdown in global growth. Yet the IMF conformed that 2012 will be a tough year, as high oil prices and the prospects of further escalation ...