Brent Struggles To Hold

(Reuters) - European stocks fell and Brent crude dropped below $125 on Tuesday, as concern that the euro zone remained vulnerable to Spain's financial struggles eclipsed recent enthusiasm following better U.S. and Chinese manufacturing data. European stocks .FTEU3 dropped 0.5 percent, with the Spanish stock index IBEX .IBEX tumbling 1.4 percent, hit by worries over Madrid's ability to tackle its debt burden while its economy flounders. The MSCI world equity index .MIWD00000PUS was down 0.1 percent at 1130 GMT, taking a breather after a two-day rally, and U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street. Futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 were down 0.2-0.3 percent. Spain's debt will jump to its highest level since at least 1990 this year as the economy sinks ...

Fundamental Analysis EUR " is a crucial step forward toward the adoption of the second program" - Olli Rehn, EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Germany and the European Commission welcomed Greek approval of additional austerity measures required to secure a 130 billion euro bailout from international lenders. USD "It’s a continuation of the bull market and we’re encouraged by what we are seeing in Europe" - Laszlo Birinyi, president of Birinyi Associates Inc. U.S. stocks rose on Monday after Greek lawmakers turned austerity plan into law to secure rescue funds from the International Monetary Fund and Europe. GBP "Growth is starting again because we’ve got tentative signs of optimism" - John Cridland, CBI Director-General The Confederation of British Industry said the nation ...

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 ...

(Reuters) - Brent crude oil struggled to sustain gains made earlier on Thursday as a large build-up of oil stocks in top consumer the United States countered upbeat economic data globally. ICE Brent crude for March was up 9 cents to $111.65 a barrel by 5:16 a.m. ET after earlier rising as high as $112.50. U.S. crude was at $96.92, down 69 cents. U.S. crude inventories jumped more than 4 million barrels last week, exceeding an expected build of 2.4 million barrels. Gasoline demand fell to an 11-year low. But the outlook was not entirely gloomy. Factory activity rose last month in the United States, China and Germany, the world's three manufacturing superpowers, raising hopes the global economy will not be dragged down by the euro zone debt crisis. "We've got a bullish bias, and the ...

NEW YORK (Reuters)- For the small club of companies who trade the food, fuels and metals that keep the world running, the last decade has been sensational. Driven by the rise of Brazil, China, India and other fast-growing economies, the global commodities boom has turbocharged profits at the world's biggest trading houses. They form an exclusive group, whose loosely regulated members are often based in such tax havens as Switzerland. Together, they are worth over a trillion dollars in annual revenue and control more than half the world's freely traded commodities. The top five piled up $629 billion in revenues last year, just below the global top five financial companies and more than the combined sales of leading players in tech or telecoms. Many amass speculative positions worth ...

(Reuters) - Brent and U.S. oil fell on Friday after manufacturing in China hit a 28-month low, raising concerns that fuel demand at the world's second largest oil importer may slow with the market also watching the progress of reserve oil stocks sales by IEA member nations. Chinese factory output expanded in June at its lowest pace in 28 months, a survey showed, indicating the world's second-largest economy is feeling the pinch of monetary policy tightening and slack global demand. ICE Brent crude fell 81 cents to $111.67 a barrel by 0240 GMT, after falling nearly $1 earlier. Brent is on track to post a rise this week after two straight weekly losses. U.S. crude was at $94.82 a barrel, down 60 cents. "The data is just showing a recurring theme in China. Manufacturing continues to slow ...

The Week Ahead Highlights Fresh signs of global slowing keep risk down All eyes on Greece, again IEA emergency reserve release - Transitory or permanent influence on crude oil prices? UK data releases evidence a stagnant economic recovery Important technical levels to watch in the week ahead Key data and events to watch next week Fresh signs of global slowing keep risk down Markets received fresh signals this past week that global growth is moderating further, suggesting potential for further declines in risk assets (stocks and commodities) in the weeks ahead. Stocks in the US did not lose much ground, but attempts to rebound were rejected, highlighting our view that sellers remain dominant. Commodities, using the CRB index as the proxy, posted much sharper ...

(Reuters) - Narrowing market price ranges suggest now may be a good time for consumers and producers to take advantage of the cheaper cost of hedging their exposure to copper and aluminum, analysts said. Hedging or insuring using options -- contracts which give holders the right to buy or sell the three-month metal contract on the London Metal Exchange at a fixed price in the future -- now costs less because volatility has tumbled, for now at least. The current lull could prove short-lived, providing a good window to pick up cover against future shocks. "We've come from extreme volatility to a period of well defined ranges and relative stability," said Robin Bhar, analyst at Credit Agricole. "It's unlikely to continue simply because there are a lot of uncertainties, geopolitics, the ...

USD An uneasy calm descended over FX markets during the Asia session, and risk currencies managed to hold their ground despite continuing concerns about Libya. The dollar fell further against the yen, but has steadied against the Swiss franc. EURUSD traded 1.3649-1.3712, USDJPY 82.53-82.89. AUDUSD crept back above parity although there seemed to be little conviction behind the move. NZDUSD continues to languish sub-0.75. The euro remains supported on expectations of a hawkish ECB press conference next week. The S&P 500 fell just over 2%, registering its worst one-day fall since August. WTI and Brent are $95.57 and $106.45, respectively, and gold is $1399.83 at the time of writing. On the US data front, both consumer confidence and the Richmond Fed manufacturing survey showed upside ...