Agricultural commodities extended previous slump on Monday as firmer US Dollar and softer global equities added pressure to the commodity pack. Grains were mainly impacted by the improving weather conditions in the main planting regions in the US, the Great Plants and Midwest, that are expected to boost harvest prospects. At the same time sugar declined as Brazil is likely
Industry metals except from zinc continued a bearish trend on Monday as stronger US Dollar and cooling China's economy pulled the commodity group lower. Ongoing Euro Zone's debt concerns after surging Spain's cost of borrowing also pressured the base metals pack. Aluminium's downswing was limited as demand strengthened while copper was marginally lower despite stimulating increase in the US retail
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average ended modestly lower on Tuesday ahead of Spanish debt auction. Nevertheless losses were limited as US posted a strong retail sales data. Nikkei 225 index shed 0.06% or 5.93 points and settled at 9,464.71. Sony Corp tumbled 2.3% as the electronics company gets about 20% of its revenue in European region. Olympus Corp. lost 2.3% after
Dow Jones Industrial Average index advanced on Monday as US retail sales in March surged by 0.8% instead of expected 0.4% gain. Blue chip index gained 0.56% or 71.82 points and closed at 12,921.41 with all sectors posting gains. Procter& Gamble jumped 1.5% after the firm raised its quarterly dividend. Caterpillar climbed 0.8% after heavy machinery equipment provider was upgraded
S&P 500 index traded almost flat on Monday as gains from higher that expected retail sales in March were offset by Apple Inc which faced the biggest daily drop since October. US benchmark slipped 0.05% or 0.69 points to 1,369.57. Apple lost 4.2% on news mobile-phone carriers may decrease subsidies for the iPhone. Mattel plunged more than 9% after posting
Precious metals apart from palladium dropped on Monday amid renewed concerns over the Euro Zone's debt crisis and broadly stronger US Dollar. Weakness of the energy markets due to vanishing supply risk premium also added pressure to the precious metals. Gold and platinum were the weakest metals in the group as Fed is still undecided about whether to provide fresh
Spanish efforts to reduce debt burden and relieve the concerns of lenders are boosting nation's risk to fall into bigger recession, claims Madhur Jha at HSBC Holdings Plc. Spain should be provided with external financing to gain time for its policy makers to introduce reforms in country's pension system, labour market and housing market Tom Keene and Ken Prewitt from HSBC added
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index traded slightly lower on Tuesday as investors remained cautious regarding Spain and data showed FDI in China fell 6.1% in March. Hang Seng index shed 0.23% or 48.33 points and finished at 20,562.31. Chinese banka contributed the main losses to the index as China Construction Bank dropped 2%. China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines
China faced a 6.1% annualized fall in FDI last month, according to official data. The country received about 11.76 billion US Dollars in overseas investments in Mach that is more than in February when China's FDI tumbled to 7.7 billion US dollars. The FDI inflows for Q1 approached 29.5 billion US Dollars, falling by 2.8% from Q1 of 2011.
Japan's industrial production declined more than initially expected in March, reported the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. The industrial production shank by 1.6% on a seasonally adjusted basis in March as compared to a 1.2% fall in February. Experts predicted the industrial production to slide by 1.2% in March.
Crude oil futures increased during Asian trading hours on Tuesday, being supported by firm US retail sales that are likely to spur demand for the commodity. Light, sweet crude oil futures for May delivery traded at 103.53 US Dollars per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, inching up by 0.15% from the previous session's low of 103.52 US Dollars
The Yuan appreciated against its US counterpart during morning session on Tuesday, rallying for the second consecutive day after China widened the daily currency band. USD/CHY exchange rate attainted 6.3010 amid global greenback's weakness. The trade was slightly choppy as risk-aversion among investors increased in view of global economic concerns, said one trader from China.
President Obama's advance over Republican rival Mitt Romney has declined reaching a gap of 4 percentage points compared to 11 points in previous month as Romney has become as the potential presidential nominee from Republican Party. 47% of registered voters supported Obama in telephone poll made from April 12-15 while 43% voted in favor of Romney. In same type of
India's central bank unexpectedly reduced its interest rate by 50 basis points instead of 25 basis points widely projected. It is the first interest rate cut in the last three years. The move is intended to boost sluggish economic growth of the country as GDP expansion in Q1 slowed to three-year low of 6.1%. The RBI also warned there is
Gold futures jumped at the Asian session on Tuesday, erasing some of the previous losses despite stronger US Dollar. Traders were mainly inspired by waning corners over Spain's debt crisis as the ECB is likely to intervene to ease credit pressure in the country. COMEX gold futures for delivery in June traded at 1,652.85 US Dollars per troy ounce on
China has raised its US debt holding for the second consecutive month as country's foreign exchange portion continued to advance. China purchased 12.7 billion US dollars of the US Treasuries in February thus boosting the debt holding to 1,178.9 billion US Dollars, according to the US Treasury Department. Chinese foreign exchange reserves gained 3.9% in Q1 on an annual basis.
Rio Tinto Ltd. announced that its sales of iron ore soared by 2% in Q1 on a yearly basis whereas copper output tumbled by 18% as red metal's grades are likely to be lower than expected. Meanwhile iron ore production surged by 10% attaining 59 million tons while alumina output increased by 13%. The production of coking coal gained 5%
US retail sales eased up more than projected last month, extending previous month's gain, according to the US Census Bureau. The retail sales increased by 0.8% in March as compared to a 1.1% rise in the preceding month. Analysts predicted the figure to edge up by 0.3% in March. Core retail sales that exclude auto sales advanced by 0.8% in
Japan will give 60 billion US Dollars in loans to the IMF to boost IMF lending capacity. The IMF has asked its members to contribute more funds to stabilize situation in the indebted Euro Zone countries. Meanwhile Japan expects other members of the IMF to back up the fund. The agreement with Japan is a significant step towards promoting world's
Apple Inc stocks declined for a fifth consecutive session on Monday amid worries the demand for iPad may weaken and Apple partners including Verizon Wireless may cut subsidies for iPhone, hampering the profitability of Apple best selling items. Apple tumbled 4.2% and closed at USD 518.13 a share yesterday, posting the biggest drop since October 19. Until the latest drop Apple shares
US blue chip stocks climbed on Monday lifted by better than expected retail sales though Apple Inc erased gains for S&P main index and Nasdaq Composite. S&P 500 index dropped 0.05% or 0.69 points at 1,369.57 while Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.56% or 71.82 points and closed at 12,921.41. Nasdaq Composite index fell 0.76% or 22.93 points to 2,988.40.
The 17-nation currency depreciated versus its US counterpart and Japanese currency ahead of Spanish debt sale on Tuesday. The Euro shed 0.2% versus US Dollar to USD 1.3110 and gave up also 0.2% against Yen to JPY 105.42. Currently EUR/USD is trading at USD 1.3110 and EUR/JPY is trading at JPY 105.41.
European stock markets managed to end up in green area on Monday as data showed US retail sales climbed more than expected in March. Nevertheless gains were limited as Spanish stocks stayed under pressure. Stoxx Europe 600 index gained 0.3%, Spanish IBEX fell 0.6% and French CAC 40 index added 0.5%. FTSE 100 index soared 0.3% and German DAX advanced
Canadian currency depreciated against the Japanese Yen on concern European debt turmoil may be regaining momentum, making less attractive the currencies of nations which produce and export raw materials. Loonie tumbled 1% versus Japanese currency to JPY 80.18 yesterday. Canadian Dollar traded almost flat against its US peer and traded at CAD 0.9994. Currently CAD/JPY is trading at JPY 80.40.