India, the third largest economy in Asia, faced a significant growth slowdown in the first quarter of the year. Indian Rupee has appreciated against USD by 0.6% yesterday after 12-month downfall. This harmed the costs of import as the Bombay Sensitive 30 index instantly rose by 0.1%. GDP climbed by 5.3%, which is the lowest indicator since 2003, whereas trade
Hang Seng Index soared 2.19% or 416.19 points to 19,441.46 on Friday as market participants turned to riskier assets after the EU leaders agreed to ease borrowing conditions for Spain. A fall in industrial profits in May restricted gains of oil and gas sector. China Life Insurance and Citic Securities led rally for insurers and brokerage firms on speculation that
British FTSE 100 pared previous day's losses and rallied on Friday as European leaders unexpectedly managed to come up with a bundle of measures to boost growth and support region's banking sector. Financial and resource shares sent index higher. Lloyds Banking Group added 4.4% and RBS accelerated 3.9%. BP PLC gained 2.3% and BG Group PLC advanced 3.5% as oil
Despite a 0.3% drop in German retail sales nation's main stock index DAX 30 appreciated sharply on Friday after European leaders agreed on measures to aid Spanish banking system and indicated further support for Italy if needed. Carmakers recovered from previous slump. Daimler AG jumped 3.1% after the German firm and Nissan agreed to supply each other light-duty trucks in
Agricultural commodities dropped on Thursday as weather conditions in the US improved while demand remained uncertain.Wheat eased down on speculation that long-awaited rains in the US Great Plans will be sufficient to revive crops. Moreover, wetter weather boosted harvest perspectives in Canada.Corn moved lower for the first time in the week as rains in the US top-growing regions stimulated hopes
Energy commodities posted losses on Thursday on global demand concerns. Pessimism about the EU summit and possible introduction of healthcare reform in the US both added pressure on the commodity pack.Crude oil lost more than 3% as traders shifted from riskier assets to the US Dollar amid turmoil in the Eurozone. Even looming Iranian oil embargo failed to support the
Industry metals, except for zinc, plunged on Thursday on decreasing risk-appetite among traders as the EU summit has not generated clear response to deepening crisis in the single currency union yet.Aluminum was the top-loser despite sharp production falls in Asia and Australia. Alcoa announced large labor force reductions in Australia aimed at cost-cutting in view of weak aluminum prices.Copper inched
Precious metals tumbled on Thursday amid stronger US Dollar and weaker global equities. Disappointing EU summit also created additional pressure on the commodity group.Gold declined on rising risk-aversion in the markets as investors doubt in EU leaders ability to resolve debt crisis in the region. Silver decreased amid softer equities worldwide. Strengthening US Dollar also weighed on the white metal.
Profits of Chinese industrial companies shrank for a second consecutive month in May owing to economic slowdown. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, income declined by 5.3% from 2012 to USD61 billion. It is expected that the Chinese government may introduce measures to foster economic growth by stabilizing international trade and investing in infrastructure development.
The 17 nation currency rallied most in 2012 on Thursday after European officials lessened rules on loans to Spain's banks and signalled more support to Italy. Euro jumped 1.5% versus U.S. Dollar on Thursday, the biggest daily gain since November 2011 and added 1% during London morning trade on Friday. Currently EUR/USD is trading at 1.2581.
South Korean Won rocketed to a seven-week high and government bonds diminished following the EU leaders` decision to aid troubling banks, agglomerating demand for riskier assets. The Won added 0.8% at the close in Seoul, after weakening by 0.3%. The currency advanced 1% since June 22 fixing a fifth weekly gain. The Won`s one-month volatility deteriorated 31 basis points.
Eurozone leaders agreed to relieve repayment requirements for loans to Spain's banks and ease conditions to aid Italy after German Chancellor Merkel capitulated on applying more measures to halt the debt woe. Euro rallied 1.1% versus US Dollar to 1.2579 on the news.
Retail sales in Germany unexpectedly declined for a second straight month in May highlighting the negative impact of debt crisis on economy. On monthly basis retail sales contracted 0.3% contrasting the predicated improvement of 0.2%. On annual basis sales have lost 1.1%. Germany's unemployment level remained flat at 6.8% in June while the number of jobless people climbed by 7000.
S&P 500 index began the session with sharp losses before Supreme Court decision over President Obama's health care law. Financials fell on news JP Morgan trading loss could reach USD 9 billion instead of earlier estimated USD 2 billion. US benchmark shed 0.21% or 2.81 point to 1,329.04. Genworth Financial jumped 11% on rumours hedge fund Highfields Capital Management is
Japan's shares rallied on Friday sending Nikkei 225 index 1.5% or 132.67 points higher to 9,006.78. Markets experienced an uplift after Eurozone leaders conceded to relieve repayment criterion for emergency loans to Spain's lenders and ease potential aid for Italy at the summit in Brussels dealing with the debt turmoil. Export shares contributed positively to the index with Sony Corp
The IMF may reconsider Greek loan conditions after the visit to Greece next week, during which the IMF, ECB and the European Commission officials will meet the new government and evaluate the economic developments. Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras promised to continue to widen and deepen economic overhaul, as he requested to ease budget-austerity requirements.
The number of individuals applying for unemployment benefits in the US decreased less than projected last week, according to the US Department of Labor. The number of jobless claims eased down by 6,000 to 386,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis, confronting the expectations for a 7,000 drop last week. Despite slowing recovery of the job market, the number of unemployment
Japan's industrial output declined more than expected in May, according to preliminary data. The industrial production of the country dropped by 3.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in May compared to a 0.2% fall in April. Experts predicted industrial output to slide by 2.8% in May. Despite dismal data release, the Japanese Yen advanced against its US peer by 0.14%,
HSBC reduced its growth forecast for Latin American countries, citing falling commodity prices and weak performance of Brazil. The bank cut its GDP expansion outlook for 2012 for Latin American block from 3.8% to 3.2%. Meanwhile Brazilian growth outlook for this year was lowered from 3.2% to 2.5% whereas Mexican GDP was maintained at 3.4% this year, HSBC added.
Crude oil prices moved higher in Asian trade on Friday amid broadly weaker US Dollar. Looming Iranian oil export sanctions supported the commodity price. A full oil embargo comes in force July 1. Currently, light, sweet crude oil futures for delivery in August traded at 79.09 US Dollars per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, edging up 1.81%.
Gold prices eased up during Asian session on Friday amid broadly weaker US Dollar. US Dollar Index, which monitors the greenback's performance against a set of the six main currencies, lost 0.88% to 82.16 US Dollars. Comex gold futures for delivery in August traded at 1565.05 US Dollars per troy ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, rising by 0.94%.
Japanese unemployment rate declined to 4.4% last month, indicating moderate recovery of the labour market after recent natural disasters, reported the Internal Affairs ministry. Experts projected the jobless rate of the country to approach 4.6% last month. Meanwhile the number of new job offers jumped by 3% on a monthly basis and by 24.4% on an annualized rate.
EU leaders agreed to use financial resources of the Eurozone's bailout fund to backup banks directly, without increasing sovereign debt. Eurozone-wide body to supervise the banks also was established, said Herman van Rompuy, EU chief. Experts claim that persistent worries over Italy's and Spain's economic instability finally persuaded Angela Merkel to shift to more growth-boosting strategies. The project is expected
Following the decision of European leaders to ease Spanish debt terms, the Euro soared against its major counterparts. The European shared currency jumped 1.1 percent to 1.2579 US Dollars and surged 0.9 percent to 99.77 Yen. The EU officials are meeting in Brussels to discuss measures to combat the debt crisis, which forced five Eurozone members to seek bailouts.