LONDON (Thomson Financial) - US SUMMARY: Stocks mostly lower, oil plunges
Index Change Percent change
*DJIA 10962.54 -92.65 -0.84
*Nasdaq 2215.71 +2.84 +0.13
*S&P 500 1214.91 -13.39 -1.09
Nymex crude
for August $138.74 -$6.44
10 year U.S.
Treasury 3.82 percent
*Tuesday's close
STOCKS: Wall Street ended a whipsaw Tuesday mostly lower, as fears of
escalating instability in the financial sector kept investors on edge despite a
steep retreat in oil.
Just days after the government said it would aid Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
if necessary, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress the U.S.
economy faces "numerous difficulties."
During the day's testimony, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also said the
Bush administration has no immediate plans to lend money to the mortgage giants
or buy their stock.
In economic data, the Labor Department said core inflation at the wholesale
level, which excludes energy and food, ticked up by just 0.2 percent, but that
overall wholesale prices jumped by a larger-than-expected 1.8 percent -- the
biggest gain since November.
BONDS: Treasury prices rose Tuesday as investors moved into the relative
safety of government debt on further concerns about the financial services
sector and the economy. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which
moves opposite its price, fell to 3.82 percent from 3.86 percent late Monday.
FOREX: The dollar sunk to a new low against the euro, as markets worried
about the ongoing U.S. lending crisis and the state of the country's economy.
The 15-nation currency's new all-time high against the dollar surpassed its
previous record of $1.6018 set on April 22. But the dollar recovered throughout
the day in New York, as the euro retreated to $1.5878 compared with $1.5916 late
Monday.
The British pound rose as high as $2.0155 before declining to $2.0020 in the
late afternoon -- still above the $1.9944 it bought Monday. The dollar slid to
105.07 Japanese yen from 106.12 yen, and weakened to 1.0026 Canadian dollars
from 1.0054 Canadian dollars. The dollar also fell to 1.0134 Swiss francs from
1.0161 francs.
OIL: Oil prices fell harder than they have in 17 years Tuesday, as fears
that record fuel prices are spreading broad economic pain exacerbated the third
big sell-off in just over a week.
A barrel of light, sweet crude dropped $6.44 to settle at $138.74 on the New
York Mercantile Exchange as traders bet that the weak economy in the United
States and elsewhere will take its toll on global demand.
METALS: Gold for August delivery roared as high as $989.60 an ounce on the
New York Mercantile Exchange, before a steep drop in oil prices put the brakes
on the metal's rally, dragging down other commodities in a big sell-off.
Other precious metals also fell Tuesday. Silver for September delivery
dropped 23.7 cents to settle at $23.7 an ounce on the Nymex.
EVENTS:
June consumer prices (1230 GMT)
June real earnings (1230 GMT)
June Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization (1315 GMT)
June Cleveland Fed Median CPI (1500 GMT)
NJ employment, unemployment (2030 GMT)
Abbott Laboratories Q2 results. EPS forecast $0.79 versus $0.69 (before
market opens)
Ebay Inc. Q2 results. EPS forecast $0.41 versus $0.34 (1600 GMT)
Wells Fargo & Co Q2 results. EPS forecast $0.53 versus $0.67 (before market
opens)
July home builders' index (1700 GMT)
FOMC minutes from June 25 (1800 GMT)
ASIA SUMMARY: Stocks up, oil rises
Index Change Percent change
Nikkei 225 12778.24 +23.68 +0.19 (0423 GMT)
S&P/ASX 200 4872.90 +57.20 +1.19 (0425 GMT)
Straits Times 2840.98 +10.23 +0.36 (0423 GMT)
Seoul Composite 1510.21 +0.88 +0.06 (0443 GMT)
Hang Seng 21270.34 +95.57 +0.45 (0428 GMT)
BSE Sensex 12826.52 +150.33 +1.19 (0428 GMT)
10-year JGBs 1.555 percent +0.01 (Intra-day trade)
Brent North Sea crude $138.96 +33 cents (Intra-day trade)
for August
STOCKS: Asian stocks rose Wednesday after opening lower. Australian shares
rose, with retailer Woolworths Ltd. gaining on upbeat sales and outlook, while
the big banks bounced back after recent hefty losses.
BONDS: Japanese government bond prices were mixed on Wednesday as investors
continued to be cautious about the U.S. financial sector and economy. At the
midday break, the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond edged up to 1.555 percent
from 1.545 percent on Tuesday.
FOREX: The dollar held steady against the euro on Wednesday after sliding to
a record low the previous day, with a sharp drop in oil prices helping to
temporarily offset the mounting gloom over the U.S. financial sector.
The dollar was little changed at 104.65 yen, up from a six-week low of
104.16 yen struck on Tuesday as it plummeted 1.5 percent -- the biggest one-day
tumble since the collapse of Bear Stearns on March 17.
OIL: Oil prices rose in Asia on Wednesday after fears for economic growth
sent prices into their steepest fall in 17 years during New York trading. New
York's main oil contract, light sweet crude for August delivery, was 22 cents
higher at $138.96 a barrel.
EVENTS:
Japan May tertiary index
Rio Tinto Q2 production report
Coal & Allied Industries Ltd. Q2 production report
Macau casino operator SJM Holdings shares begin trading in Hong Kong
Hong Kong's Emperor Entertainment Hotel FY results
Hong Kong's Modern Beauty FY results
Taiwan govt 30 bln twd offer of 5-year stripped bonds
India's Housing Development Finance Corp.'s Q1 results
India's Power Finance Corp.'s Q1 results
India's Tata Consultancy Services Q1 results
India's Petronet LNG Q1 results
India's Container Corp. of India Q1 results
India's Tata Teleservices Q1 results
EUROPE SUMMARY: Stocks drop, oil falls
Index Change Percent change
*FTSE 5171.90 -128.50 -2.42
*DAX 6081.70 -118.55 -1.91
*CAC 4061.15 -81.38 -1.96
pound-dollar 2.0056 -0.0058 -0.29 (Intra-day)
euro-dollar 1.5977 -0.0034 -0.21 (Intra-day)
Brent crude
(August) $142.37 -$1.55 (Intra-day)
*Tuesday's close
STOCKS: UK bluechips closed lower Tuesday as downbeat economic news on both
sides of the Atlantic added to investor wariness, but were off lows as oil fell
back sharply and U.S. markets came back off lows. German and Paris shares also
ended lower.
The German ZEW business confidence indicator slumped to a record low of
-63.9 in July, down from -52.4 in June and far beyond analysts' expectations for
a more modest decrease to -57.0.
BONDS: European government bonds continued to rally on fears for the U.S.
economy after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke could offer markets no words
of comfort but warned that the outlook for growth had recently worsened further.
In the UK, gilts followed neighbouring markets higher after coming under
pressure earlier due to alarming inflation data. CPI inflation rose to an annual
rate of 3.8 percent in June from 3.3 percent in May -- almost twice the official
2.0 percent target and well above market forecasts for a 3.6 percent rate.
FOREX: The dollar remained close to its fresh all-time low against the euro
following a bleak assessment of financial markets from Federal Reserve chairman
Ben Bernanke and weaker-than-expected U.S. retail sales figures.
Elsewhere, the pound remained well bid against the dollar, having briefly
hit a three-and-a-half month high against the dollar following
higher-than-expected CPI inflation data.
OIL: Oil prices fell heavily on Tuesday, erasing earlier gains, as traders
feared that slower economic growth in the United States could dampen future
demand.
New York's main oil contract, light sweet crude for August delivery, dropped
$1.38 to $143.80 a barrel. London's Brent North Sea oil for August declined
$1.55 dollars to $142.37.
EVENTS:
UNITED KINGDOM
UK labour market report (0830 GMT)
BT Group AGM
Experian AGM
ICAP AGM
Bluebay Asset Management (Q4) trading statement
Hochschild Mining Q2 production figures
Land Securities trading statement
Rio Tinto Q2 operations review
JD Wetherspoon trading statement
Wolseley trading statement
Farnborough Air Show
AUSTRIA
June CPI data
BENELUX
Dutch May trade surplus
Kinepolis H1 visitor figures (1300 GMT under embargo until 1545 GMT)
ASML Q2 results
CZECH REPUBLIC
May retail sales (0700 GMT)
FRANCE
June CPI (0645 GMT)
June large retail store prices (0650 GMT)
Alstom Q1 orders, sales
ADP June traffic
GDF, Suez EGM on merger
Orpea H1 sales
Etam Developpement Q2 sales
Guyenne et Gascogne Q2 sales
Eurostar H1 results
GERMANY
June final CPI (0600 GMT)
MAN press conference with CEO Samuelsson on 250-year anniversary (0900 GMT)
German Supreme Court to rule on whether and how gas companies must prove
price increases are appropriate
AEG-Electrolux, Siemens, Bosch et al to present new products at preview
event for consumer electronics fair IFA (final day), Hamburg
ITALY
Kedrion starts trading on Italian stock exchange
Autogrill presents business plan (1000 GMT)
SCANDINAVIA
Tomra Systems Q2 results. Pretax profit forecast 111 million crowns versus
107 million; sales 872 million versus 887 million
Minutes of Riksbank July 2. Executive Board's monetary policy meeting to be
published (0730 GMT)
SWITZERLAND
May retail sales (0715 GMT)
EUROPEAN UNION/EURO ZONE
Euro zone June final HICP (0900 GMT)
EU's Barroso, Kroes give speeches at European Parliament
EU's Barroso receives Slovenian president
EU's McCreevy receives head of VW works council
EU Parliament committee hearings on climate change package
TFN.newsdesk@thomson.com
npr
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