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Increasing Growth ConcernTitle:
Brent falls below $124 on China demand concerns
(Reuters) - Brent crude dropped below $124 a barrel on Thursday, after weak Chinese manufacturing data sparked concerns that energy demand growth could slow in the world's second-largest oil consumer.
China's factory activity shrank in March for a fifth successive month, with the overall rate of contraction accelerating and new orders sinking to a four-month low, the HSBC flash purchasing managers index (PMI) showed on Thursday.
"It's a surprising reading, and is contrary to improving monetary conditions and stabilizing external conditions," said Natalie Robertson, a commodities strategist with ANZ Bank in Melbourne. "It reflects Chinese demand on the ground, which has a significant impact on commodity markets."
Brent crude shed 58 cents to $123.62 a barrel by 0654 GMT, after settling 8 ...
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UK Pound Drops on Government Borrowing
UK pound is struggling today, dropping on the latest figures related to government borrowing. As the government prepares to share its new budget, it’s clear that there isn’t going to be much room for stimulus. The news has the sterling heading lower against the euro and the US dollar today.
Borrowing figures for the British government show that, year-to-date in February, the UK government has borrowed 110 billion pounds. The news came as public sector borrowing increased by 15.2 billion pounds in February. This amounts to record borrowing for the UK government, and many are concerned about the ability of Britain’s policymakers to stimulate growth.
Indeed, some think that the recently released figures indicate that Britain’s situation is worse than many expected. And, with so much ...
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Copper falls on China demand concerns, dollar strength
(Reuters) - Copper fell on Tuesday as the dollar strengthened and equities markets retreated and after BHP Billiton (BLT.L), the world's biggest miner, raised concerns about the possibility of a sharp slowdown in iron ore demand from top metals consumer China.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was $8,408 per ton in official rings from a close of $8,570 on Monday. It was down more than 2 percent after U.S. housing data, before recouping some of those losses.
U.S. housing starts fell last month, but permits for future construction jumped to their highest level since October 2008, according to a government report that showed steady improvement in the housing market.
"There is a big difference between permits being awarded, and building taking place, but the housing data ...
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Copper falls on China demand concerns, currency
(Reuters) - Copper fell on Tuesday as the euro and equities markets retreated and after BHP Billiton (BLT.L), the world's biggest miner, raised concerns about the possibility of a sharp slowdown in demand from top metals consumer China.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange fell 1 percent to $8,485 per ton by 0956 GMT from a close of $8,570 on Monday.
The metal hit its highest in two weeks at $8,690 on Friday and is up more than 12 percent this year, but has struggled to breach that level.
"It's choppy within a range. It's partly dollar strength, but also I suspect a rather more cautious commentary from BHP," BNP Paribas analyst Stephen Briggs said.
"There is a slowing trend in China ... moving increasingly away from the growth model that they have had, which may be a little ...
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Gold edges down, positive U.S. outlook dents demand
(Reuters) - Gold edged lower on Tuesday as a brightened U.S. economic outlook dented its safe-haven appeal, while a buoyant equity market also prompted investors to take money out of bullion.
The expectations of further monetary easing worldwide amid a sluggish growth outlook had boosted investment in gold as a hedge against inflation, sending cash gold prices up as much as 14 percent this year to near $1,800 an ounce.
But the flight to safety has started to lose its appeal with upbeat U.S. data in recent months increasing investor confidence in the recovery of the world's largest economy.
"Investors are looking at other investment options, as they are less concerned about economic growth and more wanting to hop on the equity rally, which clearly works against some of the reasons why ...
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Copper up, U.S. recovery eclipses China demand woes
(Reuters) - Copper rose on Monday as an improved outlook in the U.S., the world's largest economy overshadowed concern about demand in top consumer China, where the key property sector has cooled.
Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.35 percent at $8,540 per ton in official midday rings, from $8,510 at the close on Friday. The metal lost nearly 1 percent last week and has been largely range-bound for the past two weeks.
It gained nearly 12 percent in the first two months of the year as central banks in the developed world pumped money into their economies, China restocked and risks related to Europe's debt crisis receded.
"We had a strong high in January and then China got to the new year and its a traditional seasonal lull (in demand) so things calmed down ...
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Dukascopy Afternnon Forex Overview : 16/03/2012
Fundamental Analysis
EUR
Greek unemployment rate hit a new record in Q4, approaching 20.7%. The figure indicates that country economy experiences crisis while tight austerity measures are likely to push the county into even deeper recession. The jobless rate is expected to rise further in the following months, said Platon Monokroussos, EFG Eurobank economist. Young individuals were the most severally affected by the slowdown. Almost 40% of people aged between 15 and 24 are without job as compared to 28% in Q4 of 2010.
USD
February CPI remained in laine with the 0.4% forecast after a 0.2% in January. Manufacuting sales lost 0.9% in January despite a positive 0.4% forecast and a significant 0.6% growth in December.
GBP
British FTSE 100 index climbed on Friday supported by bank stocks. ...
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Fed's Evans sees risks in 'siren calls' to hike rates
(Reuters) - Despite recent "encouraging" economic news, the Federal Reserve should do even more to boost growth, or risk stagnation that could persist for a decade or more, a top Fed official said on Friday.
The Fed earlier this week repeated its pledge to maintain ultra-low interest rates until at least late 2014, but a pronounced drop in unemployment has sparked increasing speculation in financial markets that the U.S. central might begin to raise rates much sooner.
But Chicago Fed President Charles Evans, in remarks prepared for delivery at the International Research Forum on Monetary Policy in Germany, said the Fed needs to keep juicing the economy with low borrowing costs.
With growth too slow to quickly bring down a still-high jobless rate, "monetary policy can and should take ...
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Shift in FX Drivers May Provide Support for the USD
The Week Ahead
Highlights
Shift in FX drivers may provide support for the USD
Budget D-day for Osborne
The ECB's tough talk
Shift in FX drivers may provide support for the USD
This week U.S. Treasury yields broke out of their ranges and rocketed higher. 10-year yields rose nearly 28bps since Monday and advanced above the 200-day sma for the first time since July to reach current levels of around 2.31%. U.S. equity markets rallied significantly as well this week with the S&P 500 closing above 1400 for the first time since 2008 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded at levels that have not been seen since 2007. At the same time, the USD gained against its major counterparts most notably against the Japanese yen. This may be the start of a significant shift in FX ...
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