Having Briefly Moved

The euro slipped to a four-month low against the dollar on Tuesday as a political stalemate in Greece stoked fear the country may renege on bailout pledges made to international creditors and exit the currency bloc. Concerns about slowing Chinese and global growth also drove down higher-yielding currencies and boosted the safe-haven dollar and yen, with the Australian dollar flirting with a five-month low against the U.S. currency. Greek Party leaders are expected to convene at 2 p.m. (1100 GMT) but there is little hope President Karolos Papoulias's proposal to form a technocrat government would end the stalemate, making a new election the most likely outcome. Many market players think a fresh election will make it more likely for Athens to ditch its bailout pledges and hence the euro, ...

Gold fell more than 2 percent in a second straight decline on Wednesday, hit by technical selling and investors quitting bullion trades a day after the Federal Reserve upgraded its U.S. economic outlook and offered few clues on further easing. The 5 percent or $80 per ounce slide over two days has removed the premium gold enjoyed based on expectations of further U.S. monetary easing to stimulate the economy. The precious metal has now erased gains made since late January when the Fed said it would keep interest rates for the next several years. Gold is down almost 9 percent since late February. Some funds appear to have closed out of their bullish gold bets, fearing the Fed could be done with quantitative easing after a string of improved data, including employment and retail sales. ...

Brent crude prices rose to a near three-month peak on Friday in heavy volume trading after a report showed the U.S. economy in January created jobs at the fastest pace in nine months, fueling hopes of stronger demand in the top petroleum-consuming nation. Both Brent and U.S. crude extended gains late as the euro recovered against the dollar and as oil investors covered short positions ahead of the weekend, eyeing simmering tensions between tensions with the West over Tehran's nuclear program. Oil had initially rallied ahead of the jobs report after Iran's supreme leader warned of retaliation over "threats of oil embargo and war." "The euro came back and there were shorts being covered ahead of the weekend with the situations in Iran and Greece still out there," said Stephen Schork, ...

Oil prices rose on Monday in choppy trading as protests in Kazakhstan raised fears of supply disruption even as concerns about Europe's debt crisis and uncertainty about North Korea after the death of leader Kim Jong-il kept investors cautious. Oil workers held a third day of protests in the capital of Kazakhstan's western oil-producing region, after at least 15 people were killed in the Central Asian state's deadliest riots in decades. This latest threat to oil supply comes as Libya works to restore output and exports after its civil war, and with tensions high and more sanctions being considered because of Iran's dispute with the West over Tehran's nuclear program. Oil pared gains and briefly moved lower while equities on Wall Street turned negative as European Central Bank President ...

(Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday as another bout of optimism over Europe's efforts to contain its debt crisis and a robust start to U.S. holiday sales fueled the strongest risk-asset rally in a month. Intensifying geopolitical tensions over Iran's controversial nuclear program added lift for oil, helping push U.S. crude prices briefly above $100 a barrel before traders grew skeptical over the prospect for euro zone stability. Traders looked toward Tuesday's meeting of finance ministers of the 17-nation euro currency area for more signs that a resolution may finally be at hand. "The oil markets rose on optimism that the euro zone will get sound again, but how many times have we heard that before? So some reality is setting into the markets," said Phil Flynn, analyst at PFGBest ...

(Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday on the latest bout of optimism about Europe's ability to contain its debt crisis and on a strong start to U.S. holiday sales that lifted equities on Wall Street. Oil prices also received support from concerns about supply as geopolitical tensions rise over Iran's nuclear program. U.S. crude briefly jumped above $100 a barrel intraday, helped by news that retailers racked up record sales over the long Thanksgiving weekend, the traditional start of the holiday shopping season in the United States. U.S. equities' stronger percentage gains than oil were attributed to stocks enjoying a technical recovery after seven straight lower closes and their worst week in two months. .N "The oil markets rose on optimism that the euro zone will get sound again, but ...

(Reuters) - Gold fell in tandem with riskier assets on Thursday, as disappointing economic data from China and weaker U.S. equity markets, driven by bank worries, dampened buying sentiment across the board. Bullion took the lead of weaker U.S. stocks and commodities as lower-than-expected Chinese exports renewed fears of a global economic slowdown. Wall Street is on track to snap three days of gains on lower earnings by JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N). Optimism about a plan to tackle Europe's debilitating debt crisis prompted gold, traditionally a safe haven, to move in sync with equities and commodities. The precious metal is up around 1.5 percent over the past four sessions, but was pressured on Thursday by the dollar's rise. "I think we can find still a pretty big correction (in gold) if the ...

(Reuters) - Gold fell in tandem with riskier assets on Thursday, as discouraging economic data from China and weaker U.S. equity markets dampened buying sentiment across the board. Bullion followed U.S. stocks and commodities down after news of lower-than-expected Chinese exports renewed fears of a global economic slowdown. Wall Street is on track to snap three days of gains on lower earnings by JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N). The precious metal is up around 1 percent over the past four sessions. Optimism about a plan to tackle Europe's debilitating debt crisis prompted gold, traditionally a safe haven, to move in sync with equities and commodities. Bullion once again traded below its 20-day moving average after breaching that resistance the previous day. Analysts said technical selling could ...

Weekly Economic and Financial Commentary U.S. Review Recession Fears Rise Again Today, markets received a gut-wrenching August payroll report, ratcheting up recession fears again. There were zero net nonfarm payroll jobs created in August with 58,000 fewer net jobs created during July and June. More troubling for people who still have jobs, average hourly earnings and weekly hours both contracted. Yet, the week started on a bright note, personal spending for July surprised on the upside, suggesting that economic growth was motoring ahead, when it was hit by the equity market declines and the shock to business and consumer confidence in August. Is the Glass Half Full or Half Empty? Fears of recession increased on Friday as the BLS reported that August nonfarm payrolls did not ...