Greece Lifts Euro

Morning Briefing : Dollar dips, but support seen from rising US treasury yields What's new: Forex: Dollar falls to 1-week low versus the euro, breaks below 100-day moving average Global Markets: China leads Asian shares lower; Apple lifts US stock markets Australian: RBA minutes sound cautions, hurt AUD Untied States: Fed’s Dudley acknowledged uncertainty over need for stimulus in future Euro zone: Inaugural EFSF 20-year bond issue raises €1.5 bln Germany: PPI m/m falls short of expectations at 0.4% versus 0.5% Forex rates in Asia and Indices: EUR/USD: 1.3219 – 1.3244 USD/CHF: 0.9112 – 0.9127 GBP/USD: 1.5845 – 1.5897 USD/JPY: 83.35 – 83.53 EUR/CHF: 1.2061 – 1.2069 EUR/JPY: 110.28 – 110.50 DowJones: 13'239.13 +0.05% NASDAQ: 3'078.32 +0.75% S & P 500: 1'409.75 +0.40% Nikkei: 10’141.99 +0. ...

Fundamental Analysis EUR "Ifo index provides further evidence that the economic contraction at the end of last year was only a brief stopover" - Carsten Brzeski, senior economist at ING Group German business confidence improved more than expected in February, defying fears that the euro zone’s largest economy has slipped into recession. USD " are in line with recent U.S. data showing a gradually improving economic backdrop" - Omer Esiner, a market analyst at Commonwealth Foreign Exchange The number of Americans claiming for unemployment benefits remained unchanged at 351,000 thousand in the week ended February 18 from the week before, said the Department of Labor on Thursday. GBP "Beyond March, the mortgage market is likely to click back into its default mode of flat" - William ...

(Reuters) - Gold was steady on Wednesday, fairly close to recent 11 week highs and taking a cue from the euro's march to a two month peak as investors bet that Greece would finally secure a second bailout needed to avoid default. Receding risk aversion - reflected in rising share prices - is seen as a dampening factor for gold's safe-haven credentials, with German government bonds feeling some pressure. But wider uncertainty on the euro zone's economic outlook was more supportive for gold, with Germany seeing the steepest drop in exports for nearly three years in December and the Bank of France saying its economy would not grow at all in the first quarter of 2012. Simon Weeks, head of precious metals at Scotiamocatta, said bullion seemed to be caught in an identity crisis between acting ...

(Reuters) - Gold held steady on Wednesday, fairly close to recent 11 week highs and taking a cue from the euro's run to a two month peak as investors bet that Greece would finally secure a second bailout needed to avoid default. Receding risk aversion - reflected in rising share prices - is seen as a dampening factor for gold's safe-haven credentials, with German government bonds feeling some pressure. But wider uncertainty on the euro zone's economic outlook was more supportive for gold, with Germany seeing the steepest drop in exports for nearly three years in December and the Bank of France saying its economy would not grow at all in the first quarter of 2012. Simon Weeks, head of precious metals at Scotiamocatta, said bullion seemed to be caught in an identity crisis. "It seems ...

Weekly Economic and Financial Commentary : 18/11/2011 U.S. Review Some Economic News to Be Thankful For Economic growth in the fourth quarter appears to be off to a good start. Retail sales rose 0.5 percent in October with nearly broad-based gains. Core retail sales, which exclude autos, food, gasoline and building materials, rose 0.6 percent and are up 5.7 percent on a three-month annualized basis. Inflation data provided a glimmer of hope for the economy with consumer and producer prices both pulling back. We expect prices to decelerate further throughout next year, which would continue to give the Fed the green light for additional quantitative easing. Modest Recovery Is Still Under Way This week's full plate of economic indicators came in largely better than expected and ...

Morning Briefing: EUR/USD braces for the 1,45 levels News: Greece: Austerity measures make it through a first round of voting, an implementation vote is expected today Asia: Easing of the short term concerns over Greece lifts risks sentiment Forex: Support for the Swissie eases slightly, Euro holds its levels and the USD is down CAD: Inflation numbers stronger than expected, speculation of BoC rate hikes pushed USD/CAD lower Germany: Retail sales for the month of May shrink by 2.8% Rates in Asia and Indices: EURUSD: 1.4518- 1.4427. USDCHF: 0.8349 – 0.8306. GBPUSD: 1.6119 - 1.6049. EURJPY: 116.97 – 116.46. USDJPY: 80.86 – 80.31. DowJones: 12’261.42 +0.6% NASDAQ: 2'740.49 +0.41% S & P 500: 1'307.41 +0.83% Nikkei: 9’816.09 +0.19% Shanghai: 2’754.52 +0.95% Gold: $ 1,511.10 Crude Oil: $ 95. ...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The euro failed to retest a recent four-month peak against the dollar on Wednesday, and analysts said persistent worries about the fiscal health of several euro zone countries may limit further gains. The euro hit a four-month high above $1.40 this week as markets began pricing in an April euro zone interest rate hike. But it retreated a day ago amid concern about the ability of indebted countries to withstand higher borrowing costs. The currency last traded at $1.3904, unchanged from late Tuesday. It bounced off technical support in the $1.3860 area but was still off the day's high of $1.3942. In an auction Wednesday, Portugal saw its cost for issuing two-year debt soar to its highest level since it joined the euro in 1999, underscoring fears that it will need a ...

The Week Ahead Highlights * Stress test results are in--Yawn * Sterling bolstered as some of the economic gloom lifts * German recovery becoming difficult to ignore * JPY-strength becoming an issue in Tokyo * Key data and events to watch next week Stress test results are in--Yawn The long-awaited results of the Eurozone banking sector stress tests were delivered on Friday and markets greeted them with a collective yawn. Earlier leaks led markets to conclude the adverse scenarios would not be especially stringent, causing most to discount the results. To re-cap, only 7 of the 91 banks tested failed, requiring a total of only EUR 3.5 bio to be raised in new capital. To put that number in perspective, some analysts reckon Spanish banks alone need to raise EUR 40 bio to ...

(Reuters) - New claims for jobless aid rose last week while consumer prices notched their largest decline in nearly 1-1/2 years in May, suggesting interest rates will remain ultra low to nurse the fragile economic recovery. Fears growth was slowing were heightened by news on Thursday that factory activity in June in the country's Mid-Atlantic region braked to its slowest pace in 10 months. Analysts had generally expected the recovery from the most painful recession since the 1930s to moderate in the second half of this year as a boost from a rebuilding of business inventories and massive stimulus from the government faded. "We are seeing that now. It is slowing as the temporary lifts from the stimulus and inventories recede, but not something that is consistent with a contraction of the ...