Hong Kong's Hang Seng index traded higher on Tuesday as gains from Chinese official PMI data were accompanied by a surge in US manufacturing activity. Hang Seng index rallied 1.31% or 268.72 points and closed at 20,790.98. Index was positively affected by the appreciation of property, financial and resource shares. Jiangxi Copper Co added 3.6% and Angang Steel Co surged
Dow Jones Industrial Average index surged on Monday lifted by US manufacturing data and reached the highest value since December 2007. Blue chip index added 0.4% or 52.45 points and closed at 13,264.49 with all nine sectors posting gains. On the upside Alcoa and Bank of America advanced 1.5% and 1.2% respectively. The main decliner within the index was retailer
S&P 500 index advanced on Monday as data showed US manufacturing activity expanded in March. US benchmark index gained 0.75% or 10.57 points and closed at 1,419.04. Avon Products rallied 17% on news Coty Inc. considers acquiring the door-to-door cosmetics provider. Apple Inc. jumped 3.2% after its new iPad received the best tablet computer title from Consumer Reports. Hartford Financial
The jobless rate in Spain advanced by 0.8% or 38,769 in March reaching 4.75 million, government officials said on Tuesday. Annual unemployment level added 9.6% in March. In February Spain's jobless rate of 23.6% was the top level in the European Union. Spain currently works on massive reforms in its labour market. Economists expected the unemployment my surge even more before it
Australian currency slipped closer to a 6-month record low as RBA signalled it is ready to implement further policy easing if necessary. Aussie dropped 0.2% versus greenback to USD 1.0402. New Zealand Dollar was traded almost flat against its US peer at USD 0.8236. Currently AUD/USD is trading at USD 1.0402 and NZD/USD is trading at USD 0.8239.
US stock markets began the second quarter with gains as data showed US manufacturing activity expanded at faster pace than expected. S&P 500 index climbed 0.75% or 10.57 points and closed at 1,419.04, Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.4% or 52.45 points and closed at 13,264.49 points while Nasdaq Composite surged 0.91% or 28.13 points to 3,119.70.
US manufacturing PMI expanded more than expected last month, indicating growth for the 32th month in line. The PMI measured by the Institute for Supply Management jumped by 1.0 point attaining 53.4 last month as compared to a February figure of 52.4. Experts had predicted the manufacturing PMI in the US to expand by 0.6 points to 53.0.
European shares advanced sharply on Monday as data showed manufacturing in US accelerated in March. Stoxx Europe 600 index climbed 1.5%, French CAC 40 index added 1.1% and German DAX jumped 1.6%. UK FTSE 100 index rallied 1.9%. Athens General index broke the positive trend and shed 2.1% driven by local banks.
Switzerland's retail sales growth decelerated in February, said Federal Statistical Office on Monday. The growth of Swiss retail turnover slowed rapidly from annual 4.7% in January to 0.8% in February. Sales in nominal terms shed 2.2% on year-on-year basis. Eliminating gasoline, the retail industry posted a yearly advance in real turnover of 0.4%. Food, tobacco and drinks added 0.3% while non food sector
Australia's central bank decided to leave its key interest rate unchanged on Tuesday meeting citing stabilization in Europe and better macroeconomic data from U.S. RBA kept the benchmark rate at 4.25%, matching analyst expectations. RBA board leaves constant rate for a third straight round after two cuts in 2011.
German DAX index fluctuated between gains and losses on Monday lifted by technology and health care shares. Deutsche Post AG advanced 1.0% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the stock from hold to buy. BMW AG jumped 1.7% after Barclays Capital confirmed car maker's overweight rating. Banks weighed on index with Deutsche Bank dropping 1.7% and Commerzbank declining 1.3%. At the moment
FTSE 100 faced a choppy session on Monday despite better than expected PMI data. Banks put negative pressure on the index after Financial Times reported several leading European lenders prepare to return the money borrowed via the ECB long-term refinancing operation. Barclays PLC lost 2.1%, Lloyds Banking Group PLC fell 2.2% while HSBC Holdings PLC slipped 1.3%. On the upside
Hong Kong's Hang Seng index extended losses on Monday giving up 0.16% or 33.2 points to 20,522.26 . The index still was negatively affected by property shares as the arrests of two Sun Hung Kai Properties executives on Friday put downward pressure on the whole index. The company fell 3% on Monday trade. New World Development Co shed 3.5%. Meanwhile
Asian stocks performed differently on Monday as South Korea's credit rating was upgraded by Moody's and data showed Japanese producer confidence fell in the first quarter. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index lost 0.1%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 0.2% and Taiwan's Taiex fell 0.9%. South Korea's Kospi advanced 0.8% and Japanese Nikkei Stock Average soared 0.3%. Chinese mainland markets were closed
Agricultural commodities advanced on Friday along with broadly lower US Dollar and stronger equities. Grain commodities gained a spree after USDA reported the grains' stockpiles declined to seven-year low level in March on a yearly basis. Concerns that corn inventories will run to a record low until the fall harvest are likely to provide long-term support for the commodity. Corn
Energy markets apart from natural gas moved higher on Friday on the increased optimism over the Euro Zone as its finance ministers agreed on boosting the bailout fund to a record high level of 700 billion Euros. From the supply side, the upswing is likely to be spurred as tensions between South Sudan and Sudan as well as between Iran
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average finished higher on Monday though gains were limited as data showed Japanese producer sentiment stayed steady in March at minus 4. Nikkei 225 index added 0.26% or 26.31 points and closed at 10,109.87. On the upside Japanese benchmark was supported by car makers as Honda Motor climbed 2%, Mazda Motor added 0.7% and Suzuki Motor gained
Dow Jones Industrial Average index traded higher on Friday lifted by US consumer confidence index which surged to a 13-month record high in March. Blue chip index climbed 0.5% or 66.22 points and closed at 13,212.04, advancing 8.1% on quarterly basis. Three stocks of 20 posted minor losses. Pfizer Inc jumped 3.8% after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analyst predicted the
S&P 500 index retreated and ended higher on Friday as Ben Bernake confirmed Fed will continue boosting economy and Europe approved larger firewall. US index added 0.37% or 5.19 points and finished at 1,408.47, gaining 12% for the quarter. Health sector extended gains with Wellpoint Health advancing 3% and Tenet Healthcare gained 2.9%. Energy stocks also posted gains as oil
EUR/USD slowed near the support level around $1.3341, and formed an ascending triangle pattern on the 30m chart. The formation has 68% quality along with 64% magnitude within 81 bars.The price was capped twice around $1.3376 level before the formation appeared. The Stochastic indicator is recovering from its oversold area, which leads to the possible price rebound. If the pair
UK home prices soared last month first time in almost two years as purchasers rushed to take an advantage of expiring property tax exemption. The average value of a housing in Whales and England climbed 0.2% compared to February. On March 24 expired the property tax exemption for first home purchasers who buy a house or an apartment for less than GBP
17-country FMs voted in favour of a firewall package adding EUR 500 billion (USD 667 billion) fresh rescue cash to EUR 300 billion already provided to bailout programs. The overall firewall size now totals USD 1 trillion plus about EUR 1 trillion ECB aid to the region's lenders. Europe has met the requirements and now awaits talks with IMF on
Japanese Yen fell against all of its peers on Monday after data showed Japanese manufacturers sentiment remained unchanged at minus 4 in the first quarter. Japan's currency gave up 0.2% versus US Dollar to JPY 83.04 and also lost 0.2% against Euro to JPY 110.76. Currently USD/JPY is trading at JPY 82.95 and EUR/JPY is trading at JPY 110.67.
Japanese producer sentiment stayed steady in March as managers forecast the Yen may recover against greenback, harming exporter turnover. The Tankan index, measuring manufacturing sentiment remained unchanged from December at minus 4. Analysts expected the gauge to improve to minus 1. A reading below zero indicates that pessimists outnumber optimists.