Talks Check Euro

Gold edged up on Monday as bargain hunters lifted prices from four-month lows, but gains were capped as an inconclusive Greek election raised the risk the country could exit the euro zone and fanned fears of a worsening debt crisis in the region. Gold has moved in tandem with riskier assets this year as the turmoil in Europe sent the euro to multi-month lows and investors turned to the safety of the dollar, analysts said. The U.S. dollar has also been supported by optimism that more positive labor market numbers will be seen soon. Gold hit an intraday high at $1,585.39 an ounce and was barely changed at $1,578.45 by 0615 GMT. Bullion had tumbled to a low of around $1,573 on Friday, its weakest since early January, on fears that the debt crisis in Europe will hurt global economic growth. ...

Political uncertainty in Europe weights upon risk appetite; Major European PMI data disappoints Economic Data (EU) ECB: €311M borrowed in overnight loan facility v €335M prior; €775.7B parked in deposit facility v €746.5B prior (FR) France Apr Business Confidence: 95 v 96e; Production Outlook: -14 v -15 prior; Own-Company Production Outlook: -4 v +8 prior (FR) France Apr Preliminary PMI Manufacturing: 47.3 v 47.4e; PMI Services: 46.4 v 50.1e (CH) Swiss M3 Money Supply Y/Y: 6.6 v 6.4% prior (CH) Swiss Q1 Real Estate Index Family Homes: 410.4 v 404.6 prior (NL) Netherlands Apr Producer Confidence: -3.3 v -2.6 prior (DE) Germany Apr Advanced PMI Manufacturing: 46.3 v 49.0e; PMI Services: 52.6 v 52.3e (EU) Euro Zone Apr Advanced PMI Manufacturing: 46.0 v 48.1e; PMI Services: 47.9 v 49.3e; ...

(Reuters) - The euro retreated from two-week highs against the dollar on Monday, pausing after its best weekly performance since February and drawing limited support from the weekend decision to double the International Monetary Fund's war chest. Worries about upcoming debt auctions in Italy and the Netherlands and concerns about a possible political backlash against austerity measures could keep the single currency in check in coming days, traders said. The Australian dollar slid after local producer price data cemented expectations of a rate cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia next week while sterling clung to its newfound market-darling status in the wake of upbeat UK retail sales data. "The increase in the IMF is just a safety net. That alone is not enough to boost risk assets," ...

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron discussed the possibility of releasing emergency oil reserves during a meeting on Wednesday, two sources familiar with the talks said, the first sign that Obama is starting to test global support for an effort to knock back near-record fuel prices. Obama raised the issue during a broad bilateral meeting at the White House, according to a UK official with knowledge of the discussion. Asked about the talks, a senior Obama administration official said: "No agreement was reached. We will continue to work together to address energy security and oil price issues." While U.S. officials have said for weeks that they will consider all possible measures - including a release from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) ...

(Reuters) - U.S. and European stocks advanced on Wednesday after promising U.S. jobs data, and the euro rebounded after hitting a three-week low on renewed optimism that Greek will complete its debt restructuring after major banks and pension funds pledged their support. Completion of the debt restructuring is crucial for Greece to secure 130 billion euros in international rescue funds needed so it can avert a chaotic default. Some traders are hoping Greece will clinch a debt restructuring before Thursday's deadline. This outlook helped revive appetite for stocks, oil and gold and kept a lid on safe-haven demand for U.S. and German government debt. A report from payrolls processor ADP showing that U.S. private-sector hiring increased more than expected in February helped cement views ...

(Reuters) - The euro rose on Monday on relief that Greece's parliament approved an austerity bill that put it a step closer to securing much-needed bailout funds, though investors were skeptical about the strength of the euro's gains with more hurdles left to be cleared. The bill was passed on the back of widespread civil unrest in the country and should allow Greece's international lenders to release the 130-billion euro rescue loan, preventing a chaotic default on the country's debt and keeping the euro zone intact. Euro zone finance ministers still expect Greece to explain how 325 million euros ($430 million) of this year's total budget cuts -- as yet unspecified -- will be achieved before it agrees to the bailout in a meeting on Wednesday. This could keep the recovery of the euro in ...

FUNDAMENTAL OUTLOOK at 0800 GMT (EDT +0400) USD The Greek negotiations appear to be moving into the final stages as Eurogroup chairman Jean-Claude Juncker announced that a press conference is scheduled for 18.00CET on Thursday, after the Eurogroup meets. The Greek Finance Minister is due to travel to Brussels today to agree on terms, but he admitted that there are still outstanding issues ahead of today’s discussions. However, the Greek government noted that the only sticking point is on pension reform, which needs to be resolved by Greece‘s political parties. While progress has clearly been made, negotiations remain tense and further complications to the deal have emerged. The ECB’s involvement in the debt swap remains a crucial element in the process and while we expect no major policy ...

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) - The euro was underpinned on Tuesday by hopes a way would be found to push through a second bailout deal for Greece, though fresh signs of exposure to Europe's economic troubles among leading banks rekindled investor unease, sending shares lower. U.S. stock index futures pointed to the unresolved Greek deal weighing on Wall Street at the open, ahead of Senate testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that may grab the spotlight at 1500 GMT (10 a.m. EST) after last week's strong jobs data. Greece's prime minister and leaders of its main political parties are set to resume talks later Tuesday on new austerity measures demanded by the EU in return for another bailout. The deal needs to be approved by February 15 if the money is to be available in time to meet a March ...