Copper And The Australian Dollar

EU leaders call on Greece to work harder, June meeting to provide more details on measures; China flash PMI contracts again Thu, 24 May 2012 1:41 AM EST Economic Data (CN) CHINA MAY HSBC FLASH MANUFACTURING PMI: 48.7 V 49.3 PRIOR FINAL (7th consecutive contraction) (NZ) NEW ZEALAND APR TRADE BALANCE (NZ$): 355M V 400ME (11-month high); TRADE BALANCE YTD: -541M V -651ME (NZ) NEW ZEALAND ANNUAL BUDGET RELEASE: AFFIRMS TARGET OF RETURNING BUDGET TO SURPLUS IN 2015 (AU) AUSTRALIA Q1 CBAHIA HOUSE AFFORDABILITY: 61.8 V 58.5 PRIOR (JP) JAPAN BOJ MONTHLY ECONOMIC REPORT: Increasingly Evident Japan Economy Is Shifting To Pickup (KR) SOUTH KOREA Q1 HOUSEHOLD CREDIT Y/Y: +7.0% V 7.8% PRIOR (lowest level since Sept 2009) (VN) Vietnam May CPI m/m: 0.2% v 0.1% prior; y/y: 8.3% v 8.9%e (JP) ...

(Reuters) - Shares, precious metals and oil fell and the euro remained pressured on Wednesday as Greece struggled to form a government after an election that saw incumbent parties punished, heightening the risk that a hard-won bailout deal could be scrapped. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS shed 1.4 percent to its lowest in more than three months, with energy .MIAPJEN00PUS, materials .MIAPJMT00PUS and growth sensitive industrials .MIAPJIN00PUS leading the declines. Resources-heavy Australian shares .AXJO plunged 1 percent to a three-week low as oil, precious metals and copper slid. European shares will likely edge up after a mauling on Tuesday, with financial spreadbetters predicting that major European markets .FTSE .FCHI .GDAXI would open 0.6 ...

Economic Data (JP) JAPAN APR OFFICIAL RESERVE ASSETS: $1.29T V $1.28T PRIOR (first increase in 3-months) (UK) UK APR BRC SALES LIKE-FOR-LIKE Y/Y: -3.3% V 0.6%E (KR) SOUTH KOREA APR BANK LENDING TO HOUSEHOLDS (KRW): 453.6T V 452.3T PRIOR (KR) SOUTH KOREA MAR MONEY SUPPLY L Y/Y: 1.8% V 0.3% PRIOR; M2 Y/Y: 0.0% V 0.7% PRIOR (CO) Colombia Apr Producer Price Index M/M: +0.2% v -0.2% prior; Y/Y: +1.6% v +1.6% prior Markets Snapshot (as of 04:30GMT) Nikkei225 -1.6% S&P/ASX -1.1% Kospi -1.0% Taiwan Taiex -0.8% Singapore Straits Times Index -0.7% Shanghai Composite -1.3% Hang Seng -1.0% Jun S&P Futures -0.1% at 1,352 June gold -0.8% at $1,591/oz June Crude -0.5% at $96.53 Overview/Top Headlines Concerns over Greece backing out of its bailout package continue to weigh on the ...

(Reuters) - Asian shares slipped on Thursday and the euro languished near a 2-week low after disappointing economic data from both sides of the Atlantic rekindled concerns about the strength of global growth. Commodities and the Australian dollar - all sensitive to growth expectations - also struggled as the data put investors on the defensive and limited appetite for riskier assets. The euro had fallen nearly 1 percent to $1.3122 on Wednesday, and European stocks also dropped, after a survey showed euro zone factories sank further into decline last month, with the downturn hitting Italy and Spain hard and appearing to take root among core members France and Germany. .EU With recently-downgraded Spain looking to raise funds in the bond market on Thursday, the European Central Bank will ...

(Reuters) - Asian shares inched up on Tuesday as Australia's larger-than-expected rate cut and firm Chinese factory data boosted Australian equities, but concerns about the U.S. economy and the euro zone capped prices in holiday-thinned trade. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.2 percent, after posting just a 0.4 percent gain in April. Most markets in Asia and Europe were closed on Tuesday to mark the May Day holiday. Financial spreadbetters predicted Britain's top share index .FTSE to open up 0.2 percent. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei stock average .N225 fell 1.4 percent as a stronger yen hurt exporters. .T Australian shares .AXJO rose 1.1 percent after the Reserve Bank of Australia slashed rates by 50 basis points against a 25 bps cut forecast. ...

(Reuters) - Asian shares rose on Monday as weaker-than-expected U.S. growth data left open the possibility of further monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve to boost growth, but trading was subdued with Japanese and Chinese markets closed. The dollar remained pressured by Friday's report showing annual growth in the U.S. economy cooled in the first quarter to 2.2 percent, below a 2.5 percent forecast, and concerns about lower fuel demand brought oil prices lower. "A flavor of QE (quantitative easing) is back in the air, driving the U.S. dollar lower and risky assets higher," said Sebastien Galy, strategist at Societe Generale. Asian equities followed the rise in global equities on Friday on the back of strong earnings reports, although Asian growth prospects were clouded as South ...

(Reuters) - Asian shares and the euro eased on Monday, but losses were kept in check after a report showed Chinese factory activity stabilizing in April, alleviating worries about a sharp deceleration in the world's second-largest economy. European shares were also expecting a lower start, with financial spreadbetters predicting that major European markets would open down as much as 0.6 percent. U.S. stock futures were down 0.2 percent. The HSBC Flash Purchasing Managers Index showed China's factory output ticked higher, new business rose from multi-month lows and export orders perked up, though not sufficiently for a private sector survey of purchasing managers to flag a return to expansionary territory. The index, the earliest indicator of China's industrial activity, improved to 49.1 ...

(Reuters) - Asian shares rose on Wednesday as firm demand at Spanish debt sales and positive U.S. corporate earnings boosted investor confidence in riskier assets. European shares were heading for a firmer start with financial spreadbetters predicting that major European markets would open up to 0.2 percent. U.S. stock futures were also up 0.2 percent. MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan climbed 1.2 percent, led by Australian shares which charged to a two-week high, following a rally in European and U.S. equities the previous day that saw Wall Street stocks scoring their biggest gain in a month. Japan's Nikkei average jumped 2 percent. "There is a sense of relief after markets cleared one hurdle, with Spanish yields falling after successful short-term debt sales," ...

(Reuters) - Asian shares and the euro fell on Monday as a surge in Spanish government bond yields renewed concerns about Europe's sovereign debt crisis and undermined investor appetite for riskier assets. China's yuan weakened after the central bank doubled the size of the currency's trading band over the weekend, a crucial reform in the process of liberalizing the country's nascent financial markets. A firmer dollar on the back of the euro zone's woes, and worries about slowing demand from China, also weighed on a broad range of commodities from precious metals and copper to oil. MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fell 0.8 percent, dragged lower by the materials sector .MIAPJMT00PUS, which underperformed other sub-indexes with the broad drop in ...