iBankCoin
Home / 2011 / June (page 47)

Monthly Archives: June 2011

Euro Drops Over Night on Greece Bailout Uncertainty

“The euro weakened against most of its major peers as uncertainty over aid to Greece reduced the appeal of assets denominated in the single European currency.

The euro fell from a three-week high against the dollar, erasing an earlier advance, after two people with knowledge of the talks said Greece’s next aid package may include incentives for bondholders to roll over maturing debt without triggering a default. The Dollar Index declined before reports that will probably show U.S. companies hired fewer workers and manufacturing cooled. The Swiss franc strengthened as data showed retail sales rose at the fastest rate for two years.

“Until there’s clarity on where the debate is going, you will get this volatility in the euro,” said Paul Robson, a senior foreign-exchange strategist at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc in London. “Clearly there’s still lots to discuss and it’s just taken the edge off the euro, which had rallied pretty hard over the last few days.”

The euro was little changed at $1.4404 as of 7:34 a.m. in New York, after advancing as much as 0.4 percent to $1.4448. It declined 0.2 percent to fetch 117.16 yen. The dollar slipped 0.2 percent against the Japanese currency to 81.38 yen.

IntercontinentalExchange Inc.’s Dollar Index, which measures the greenback against the currencies of six trading partners, was 0.1 percent lower at 74.54 after declining to 74.39, the least since May 6.”

Full article

Comments »

U.K. Manufacturing Grows at Slowest Pace in Nearly Two Years

“U.K. manufacturing grew at the slowest pace in almost two years in May as weak domestic demand led to a drop in production and new orders, a survey showed.

A gauge based on a survey by Markit Economics and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply declined to 52.1, the lowest since September 2009, from a downwardly revised 54.4 in April, according to an e-mailed report in London today. Output and new orders fell for the first time since the middle of 2009, and producers of consumer goods and smaller manufacturers were hit hardest.

The biggest government spending cuts since World War II are hurting consumer confidence, while accelerating inflation is squeezing incomes. Holidays for Easter and the royal wedding at the end of April and the impact of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami also hurt company orders.

“The fact that the output and new orders fell for the first time in two years does raise questions about where economic growth will come from,” Hetal Mehta, an economist at Daiwa Capital Markets Europe in London, said in an e-mailed note. “With that in mind, it is difficult to see how the Bank of England will be able to increase interest rates this year.”

Full article

Comments »

China’s Manufacturing Sector Continues to Slow

“China’s manufacturing expanded at the slowest pace in nine months in May as the government extended a campaign to cool inflation and the property market, a survey of companies indicated.

The Purchasing Managers’ Index was at 52 from 52.9 in April, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said in an e-mailed statement. The number was higher than the median forecast of 51.6 in a Bloomberg News survey of 16 economists. The index has a seasonal pattern of falling in May, economists said before the release.

Premier Wen Jiabao has yet to tame prices in the fastest-growing major economy as food and housing costs climb, McDonald’s Corp. charges more for soft drinks, and a drought in Yangtze River areas threatens grain production. Today’s data suggested moderating economic growth may aid his campaign, with input-price inflation easing as manufacturers’ orders and output grew at a slower pace.

“The data suggests continued moderation in industrial activities,” said Li Wei, a Shanghai-based economist at Standard Chartered Bank. At the same time, the reading was strong enough to alleviate “fears of a sharp slowdown, and thus marginally increases the chance of a further rate hike in the near term,” Li said.”

Full article

Comments »

Australia’s GDP Shortfall Not Seen Since 1991

“Australia’s economy shrank in the first quarter by the most in 20 years as floods hurt exports, even as stronger business investment underscored the central bank’s forecast for a rebound in the second half of the year.

Gross domestic product fell 1.2 percent from the previous three months, when it rose a revised 0.8 percent, the Bureau of Statistics said in Sydney today. Exports slumped 8.7 percent, subtracting 2.1 percentage points from GDP growth, today’s report showed, while machinery and equipment spending jumped 6 percent, adding 0.4 point.

The nation’s dollar rose after the report showed the contraction was smaller than a drop of as much as 2 percent that economists including Goldman Sachs & Partners Australia Pty had forecast. While Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens has held interest rates at 4.75 percent for the past five meetings to help Queensland state recover, investors today boosted bets he’ll raise borrowing costs by August.”

Full article

Comments »

Asia Up; S&P Futures Up

Asia is up moderately, while S&P futures hit session highs, up 3.5.

Comments »