New Zealand Dollar Strengthens To 4-day Highs Against Most Majors

Monday morning in Asia, the New Zealand dollar rose to 4-day highs against the currencies of US, Japan and Europe. On the other hand, the NZ dollar showed choppy trading versus the aussie.

The New Zealand stock market was trading higher today, led by top stocks, Telecom, Contact Energy and Fletcher Building. At 8.15 PM ET, the benchmark NZX 50 Index was advancing 34.74 points or 1.04% to 3,370.92, while the NZX All Capital Index was gaining 31.58 points or 0.93% to 3,418.87. The week ahead is busy for New Zealand with the Reserve Bank's monetary policy meeting on Thursday, taking center stage. With everyone expecting a 25 basis point-cut in interest rates from 8.00%, most interest was likely to focus on the accompanying macroeconomic and financial forecasts. The New Zealand retail sales report for July has been scheduled for release on Friday. The New Zealand dollar traded higher against its US and Japanese counterparts during early Asian deals on Monday. At about 5:45 pm ET, the kiwi reached 4-day highs of 0.6847 against the greenback and 74.64 against the yen, compared to Friday's close of 0.6673 and 71.64, respectively. The kiwi then weakened slightly but it rebounded shortly and is now worth 0.6826 against the greenback and 74.28 against the yen. If the NZ dollar gains further, it is likely to target the 0.722 level against the US currency and the 79 level against the yen. The Bank of Japan said today that bank lending in Japan increased by 2% on year, holding a steady rate of annual increase from the previous month. Including trusts, bank lending was flat on year at 1.8%. On a seasonally adjusted basis, bank lending increased 2.4% on year, easing from the 2.5% gain in July. The central bank also said that M3 money stocks were up 1.0% on year in August, higher than the 0.9% forecast and the 0.8% annual increase in the previous month. M2 money stocks jumped 2.4% on year, higher than the 2.1% percent forecast that also was July's reading. In early Asian trading on Monday, the New Zealand dollar also climbed to a 4-day high of 2.1020 against the euro. The next upside target level for the kiwi is seen around 2.085. The euro-kiwi pair closed Friday's deals at 2.1341. Against the Australian currency, the NZ dollar largely bounced between 1.2164 and 1.2263 in early Asian deals on Monday. The immediate support and resistance levels for the aussie-kiwi pair are seen around 1.211 and 1.236, respectively. The pair was worth 1.2181 at last week's close. The Australia and New Zealand Banking Corp said today that the volume of advertisements for jobs in Australian newspapers and on the Internet was down 4.9 percent in August from the previous month. The August figure marks the sharpest decline in seven years, and it follows a 0.3 percent monthly decline in July. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

US dollar climbs to new multi-month high against Polish zloty

Against the Polish zloty, the US dollar traded higher during early deals on Friday. At about 7:00 am ET, the dollar-zloty pair hit a new multi-month high of 2.4183, compared to 2.3835 hit late New York Thursday.

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Japanese market plunges on Wall Street losses, stronger yen

The Japanese stock market closed sharply lower on Friday, with the key indexes falling to their lowest levels since mid March, ahead of the U.S. non-farm payroll report for August scheduled for release later in the day.

Wall Street's sharp decline overnight and a stronger yen encouraged market players to sell a wide range of stocks. The key Nikkei index briefly fell more than 3% to 12,163.33 in the morning, but bargain hunting among trading houses helped the market to recoup some of the losses. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed down 345.43 points or 2.75% at 12,212.23, extending Thursday's losses. The key index has lost 6.6% over the week. The broader Topix Index of all First Section Issues lost 30.81 points or 2.56% to finish at 1,170.84. In the currency market, the U.S. dollar held steady in the upper 106-yen level in late afternoon trades in Tokyo, down 1.49 yen from Thursday's close of 108.33-108.36 yen. On Wednesday, the Dow and the broader S&P 500 indexes tumbled 3.0% each and the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunged 3.2% after a government report showed that jobless claims rose more than analysts expected for the week ended August 30 and retailers reported sluggish same store sales for the month of August. Oil prices fell for a sixth day on Thursday, closing at their lowest level in five months, as a lower-than-expected drop in U.S. stockpiles raised concerns about slowing demand for oil. In the Asian session Friday, oil was down 46 cents at $107.43 a barrel by 2:23 a.m. ET. On the economic front, the Ministry of Finance said that Japanese capital investment spending, or capex, was down an annual 6.5% in the second quarter of 2008. This marked the fifth consecutive quarter of decline. Capex was down an annual 4.9% in the first quarter of the year. The ministry also said that Japan's foreign reserves fell for the first time in three months in August. The country's foreign reserves in August stood at 997 billion yen, down 7.92 billion yen from 1.00 trillion yen in the previous month. In the financial sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group dropped 2.3%, Mizuho Financial Group slumped 6.4% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group plunged 4.7%. Top brokerage Nomura Holdings fell 3.1% and Daiwa Securities Group lost 3.3%. Exporters fell on the back of a stronger yen. Automaker Honda Motor declined 1.1%, Toyota Motor fell 2.5%, office equipment maker Canon lost 2.9%, and machinery maker Komatsu plummeted 4.4%. Electronics giant Sony plummeted 4.2% after the company announced a voluntary recall of 438,000 Vaio portable computers citing a potential hazard that could cause them to overheat. In the tech space, Advantest slid 2.5%, Kyocera declined 2.6%, Fanuc lost 2.8% and Matsushita Electrical Industrial shed 3.1%. Inpex Holdings pared early losses to finish 2.1% higher, while Nippon Oil shed 1.0% and Nippon Mining Holdings plunged 3.3%. Trading house Mitsubishi Corp closed flat, Mitsui & Co slipped 0.2%, and Itochu gave away 1.7%. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Slovak koruna Recovers From 5-month Low Against Dollar

The Slovak koruna that declined to a 5-month low of 21.3080 against the dollar at 5:20 pm ET Thursday gained ground thereafter. The pair moved to 21.1580 by about 1:20 am ET compared to 21.1440 hit late New York yesterday. As of now, the dollar-koruna pair is trading at 21.19.

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US dollar falls from 2-month high against Turkish lira

The US dollar that climbed to a 2-month high of 1.2485 against the Turkish lira at 10:55 pm ET Thursday weakened thereafter. The dollar-lira pair that closed yesterday's North American session at 1.2427 is currently trading at 1.2391.

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Chinese yuan sets new multi-year high against euro

Against the European currency, the Chinese yuan edged higher to 9.7276 during early Asian deals on Friday. This set the highest point for the yuan since April 2006.

 If the yuan strengthens further it may likely target the 9.74 level. The euro-yuan pair that closed Thursday's North American session at 9.7909 is currently trading at 9.7732. People's Bank of China today set the central parity rate for euro-yuan pair at 9.7692.  Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

NZ dollar recovers early losses against most majors

The New Zealand dollar recovered the losses it incurred in early Thursday's Asian trading against the US dollar, the European single currency and the Japanese yen. Meanwhile, the kiwi remained down against the Australian dollar.

Today, the focus of the currency market will be on interest rates decisions by the European Central Bank. Analysts expect the ECB to keep rates steady at 4.25%.

The ECB is expected to hold the key-lending rate, which is the minimum bid rate on the main refinancing operations, at 4.25%. The central bank had maintained the rate at a six-year high of 4% since June last year, before hiking it in July.

The New Zealand currency declined to 0.6804 against the US dollar before gaining ground at about 1:35 am ET Thursday. The kiwi-dollar pair is currently trading at 0.6877, compared to 0.6853 hit late New York Wednesday.

Against the European single currency, the NZ dollar touched a low of 2.1291 at about 11:55 pm ET Wednesday. Thereafter, the kiwi gained ground and is currently quoted at 2.1150 against the euro. The euro-kiwi pair closed yesterday's North American session at 2.1159.

The New Zealand currency edged down against the Australian dollar during early deals on Thursday. At about 11:45 pm ET, the kiwi slipped to 1.2243 against the Aussie, compared to Wednesday's close of 1.2209. The Aussie-kiwi pair is now worth 1.2211.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics in its report released earlier today said that the nation posted a seasonally adjusted trade deficit of A$717 million in July, contrasting sharply with analyst expectations for a surplus of A$150. The country saw a surplus of A$351 million in June, and it posted a deficit of A$964 million in July 2007.

Imports were up 4 percent in July compared to the previous month, standing at A$23.6 billion. That's up from A$22.7 billion a month earlier and from A$19.29 billion a year earlier. Exports eased 1 percent on month to A$22.88 billion, down from A$23.05 billion in June but up from A$18.33 billion in July 2007.

 
 

The New Zealand dollar that hit a low of 73.57 against the Japanese yen at about 1:35 am ET Thursday strengthened thereafter. The kiwi-yen pair that closed Wednesday's New York deals at 74.23 is now worth 74.55.

At 6.00am ET, the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology is scheduled to publish the latest report on German factory orders, which is predicted to rise 0.3% month-on-month in July, after falling for the seventh consecutive month in June.

The ADP employment change, second quarter non-farm productivity, August ISM non-manufacturing composite, initial jobless and continuing claims are the major economic releases expected from US in the New York session. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

European Markets likely to open higher; global cues mixed

The major European index futures are pointing towards a higher opening for the European markets on Wednesday, as oil is extending its slide. Global cues are mixed, as the U.S. market finished lower overnight and the major Asian markets are a mixed pack on Wednesday.

Stock markets in Europe may focus on a few key Euro-Zone economic reports scheduled for release today. That said, caution is likely to prevail ahead of the interest rate decisions by the ECB and the Bank of England on Thursday and the U.S. non-farm payrolls report to be released on Friday. The Brent North Sea crude futures were down 31 cents at $108.03 a barrel by 11:03 p.m. ET after the contract fell by $1.07 on Tuesday to settle at $108.34 a barrel, its lowest close since April 10, on London's ICE Futures Europe exchange. Oil prices fell for a fourth day as Hurricane Gustav caused minimal damage to the refineries and rigs in the Gulf of Mexico region. On Tuesday, Wall Street started off firm on the back of falling oil prices, but the major averages pared their gains in late trade as sentiment turned negative due to weakness in the resource and tech sectors. The Dow closed down 26 points at 11,516, the Nasdaq lost 18 points to 2,349 and the broader S&P 500 dropped 5 points to 1,277. In Asia Wednesday, Australia's All Ordinaries index is losing 0.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is down 1.3%, and China's Shanghai composite index is down 0.9%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 index is advancing 0.9% and South Korea's KOSPI is gaining 1.1%, The major economic reports scheduled for release in Europe are the Euro-Zone second quarter GDP and July retail sales reports. In the U.S., the factory goods orders report and the Fed's beige book on current economic conditions are due for release today. The European markets rose on Tuesday, as a drop in crude oil prices eased inflation concerns and lifted airlines and retailers. Strength in banking and insurance stocks also contributed to the gains. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of pan-European blue chips closed up 0.9% at 1,200 and the narrower DJ Stoxx 50 index rose 0.8% to finish at 2,925.11. In Europe, the U.K.'s FTSE 10 index rose 0.32% to finish at 5,620, France's CAC 40 index jumped 1.50% to close at 4,539 and Germany's DAX index climbed 1.51% to end at 6,518. In the Asian session Wednesday, the euro traded near a seven-month low against the U.S. dollar and a five-month low against the yen. The euro was quoted at $1.4496 and at 157.76 yen in early deals. Against the pound, the euro weakened to 0.8136 pound from Tuesday's close of 0.8151 pound. In the Eurpean markets, Allianz SE may react to a report that Europe's biggest insurer may take writedowns of about EUR1.2 billion after the sale of its Dresdner Bank division to Commerzbank AG, while Iberdrola SA, the world's largest owner of wind parks, may move as New York state officials are expected to rule on its $4.5 billion bid to buy U.S. utility Energy East Corp. InBev NV, the Belgian brewer, is likely to move as it is reportedly planning to sell its Korean unit for $52 billion. Michelin & Cie. may rise after the world's second-largest tiremaker said that it will increase prices on tires for cars, trucks and buses by an average 3% to 5% due to rising raw material costs. UniCredit SpA may rise after Italy's Treasury Ministry said that Italy's largest lender has an option to buy Poland's remaining 4% stake in Bank Pekao SA by the end of next year. UniCredit bought control of Poland's largest lender in 1999 Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

UK Job Market Weakens Further, Survey Shows

The UK job market weakened further in August, the Report on Jobs from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG showed Wednesday. Permanent placements declined at the sharpest rate since November 2001 and temp billings fell at a survey-record pace.

Decrease in placement signals fall in demand for staff. Meanwhile, the availability of staff to fill vacancies climbed significantly in August. Citing weak demand for staff, recruitment consultants reported modest rise in wage growth. The Report on Jobs, produced by Markit Economics on behalf of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, provides the most comprehensive guide to the UK labor market, based on original survey data provided by recruitment consultancies. Alan Nolan, Director at KPMG said, "UK employers are continuing to control payroll costs through redundancies - and by refusing to take advantage of a growing (but increasingly unused) pool of skilled labor. These workers are starting to drift abroad in search of employment - and there is a risk that (when the market turns) the UK will be left behind by a skills shortage." Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Rio Tinto signs JV deals with Codelco for copper exploration in northern Chile - Quick Facts

Rio Tinto plc announced signing of two exploration joint venture agreements with Codelco's subsidiary CCM Los Andes, in Chile. Rio Tinto noted that the two properties to be explored are the Esteli and Paloma prospects in northern Chile.

Rio Tinto said it has the option to earn a 55% interest in each prospect through stand alone exploration investments of US$20 million. The company has the provision to increased its ownership to 60%.

Rio Tinto noted that an exploration drilling programme is currently underway at Exploradora and will be followed by drilling at Paloma this year. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Indian market soars; oil slide triggers buying interest

Tuesday, the Indian market soared as a sharp decline in the price of crude oil to near $105 a barrel eased inflation concerns. US crude oil fell to $107.17 a barrel by 5:07 a.m. EDT, down $8.29 from Friday's close on initial signs that a weakened Hurricane Gustav spared major US Gulf oil facilities.

It touched a session low of $105.46, its lowest since April 2. London Brent crude was down $3.46 at $105.95. A US public holiday on Monday meant the New York Mercantile Exchange did not issue an official settlement price. The Indian market opened higher this morning, but the gains were limited in early session as a subdued trend in the Asian markets weighed on sentiment. Subsequently, the market rallied as the price of oil probed new lows on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Stocks across the board witnessed fresh buying, while realty, banking and capital goods stocks led the rally. Oil marketing companies posted sharp gains following a retreat in the price of oil, while oil production/refinery companies ended down. After opening at 14.609, the BSE Sensex witnessed range bound trading in early session. The benchmark since then spurted to a day's high of 15,106, before paring some gains to finish at 15,050, up 552 points or 3.80% over Monday's close. The broad-based BSE 500 index rose 3.12%, the mid-cap index advanced 1.66% and the small-cap index added 1.32%. Meanwhile, the S&P CNX Nifty ended at 4,504, up 3.57%. State Bank of India (up 7.44%), ICICI Bank (up 7.34%), DLF India (up 7.14%), ONGC (up 6.97%), Jaiprakash Associates (up 6.83%), Reliance Infrastructure (up 5.99%), Maruti Suzuki (up 4.84%), HDFC (up 4.66%), Larsen & Toubro (up 4.66%), TCS (up 4.23%), ACC (up 4.17%), Reliance Communication (up 4.15%), Wipro (up 3.99%), BHEL (up 3.68%)and HDFC Bank (up 3.50%) were among the major gainers. On the BSE, market breadth was extremely positive, with 1675 stocks gaining compared to 986 stocks that declined. Twenty-eight out of 30 Sensex stocks ended in positive territory. Ranbaxy Laboratories and Tata Motors are the only two stocks that declined. Stocks in news Cement makers ACC rose 4.17%, Ambuja Cements added 1.62%, JK Lakshmi Cement advanced 1.92% and Ultratech gained 1.74% after the companies reportedly raised cement prices in Mumbai by Rs.3 per 50 kilogram bag. Hero Honda Motors closed up 0.94% after the company reported a 26.84% jump in its domestic two-wheeler sales in August compared to same month last year. Great Offshore soared 7.69% after the company forayed into port management and single point mooring operations through acquisition of full stake in two domestic companies. State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur advanced 5.0% after the company fixed record date for its proposed stock-split proposal. Reliance Industries added 3.41% following reports the company dropped its plans to acquire the polyester manufacturing unit of an US-based polyester maker Unifi, in which it planned to invest about $250 million. Kinetic Motor rose 3.98% after the company's board of directors approved an investment of Rs.29.5 crore in Mahindra Two Wheelers, its joint venture with Mahindra & Mahindra. Valecha Engineering gained 4.20% after the company's board of directors fixed record date for a bonus issue to its shareholders. Tata Motors declined 1.82% after the company announced a rights issue in the ratio of 1: 6 to its shareholders. The company would raise Rs.4150 crore through two rights issues that are expected to open by the end of September. Bosch declined 2.96% to Rs.4048 after the company's board of directors agreed to buyback shares at a price not exceeding Rs.4500 per share. Archies rose 1.82% after the company secured an exclusive tie up with UK's leading brand 'Carte Blanche' to distribute and sell its renowned brand 'Me to you' in India. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

South African rand falls to 1-week low against US dollar

Against the US dollar, the South African rand edged down during early deals on Tuesday. At about 3:30 am ET, the rand declined to a 1-week low of 7.8276 per dollar, compared to 7.7555 hit late New York Monday.

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BOJ Shirakawa: Japanese Economy Likely To Stay Sluggish For Now

The Japanese economy is likely to remain sluggish in the near term, Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said on Tuesday, but was expected to gradually return to a path of moderate growth.

Speaking at a business meeting in Nagoya, Shirakawa said the economy needed to avoid secondary inflation risks, and that it was important to stay vigilant for downside risks to the economy and upside risks to inflation. Shirakawa also said that he expected the U.S. economy to remain weak in the near-term, and that he sees downside risks for the global economy. Shirakawa will appear in a press conference in the afternoon, followed by another speech at Nagoya University. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Asia Round Up - Inflation Eases in S. Korea, Thailand, Indonesia

Monday, the week started with some encouraging numbers from major Asian economies. Data showed that inflation slowed in South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia, while retail sales growth gained momentum in Hong Kong. Manufacturing survey results from some countries were also released during the day.

South Korea's consumer price annual inflation stood at 5.6% in August, slower than 5.9% recorded in July, the National Statistical Office revealed Monday. Economists were expecting annual increase in consumer prices to accelerate to 6.3% in August. Month-on-month, consumer prices dropped 0.2%. Core inflation, which excludes food and fuel prices, climbed 4.7% in August from the prior year.

Imports in South Korea increased 37% year-on-year in August, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said. That was higher than the 33.5% annual gain that analysts had been expecting, but it was less than the 47.2% jump in July. Exports were up 20.6% year-on-year, coming in less than forecasts that had called for a 22.7% annual increase, the data showed. Exports were up 36% in July. The trade balance reflected a deficit of $3.23 billion in August, following a $1.94 billion shortfall in July.

Thailand's annual inflation slowed significantly to 6.4% in August, the Commerce Ministry reported Monday. Economists were expecting the consumer price inflation to ease to 8.7% from a ten ten-year high of 9.2% recorded in July. Excluding fresh food and energy prices, consumer prices rose 2.7% in August, slower than the 3.8% growth expected by economists.

Indonesia's inflation eased to 11.85% in August from 11.9% in July, data from the statistics bureau indicated Monday. Economists were looking for an inflation rate of 11.87% for August. Further, the statistical bureau announced that exports grew about 25% year-on-year and totaled $12.55 billion in July compared with a 34.9% growth in June.

The Census and Statistics Department said Hong Kong's retail sales value increased 13.8% year-over-year to reach HK$24.2 billion in July, faster than the revised 11.7% rise recorded in June. Initially, the June increase was reported as 11.6%. Economists were looking for a 11% rise for July. The retail sales volume rose 6.6% over a year ago in July, after rising 4.1% in June, revised up from the initial estimate of 4%. Economists had expected an increase of 4% for July.

Japanese auto sales declined 14.9% in August from the previous year to 193,902 units, the Japan Automobile Dealers' Association, or JADA said. Domestic sales of cars, truck and buses dropped in August for the first time in two months. According to JADA, car sales were down 12.8% in August, while bus sales declined 23.9%. Domestic car sales totaled 166,153 units and bus sales stood at 1,066 units.

In other news, the average cash earnings for workers in Japan increased by 0.3% on a yearly basis in July, the labor ministry said in a preliminary report, standing at 388,315 yen. That was slightly lower than the revised 0.4% annual increase in the previous month, and it was in line with analyst expectations.

The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index in China posted a score of 48.4 in August, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said, holding flat from the previous month. A reading above 50 indicates economic expansion, while below 50 means contraction. Five individual components were higher in August, while five other components were lower.

The PMI for Hong Kong stood at 48.5 in August, according to data from Markit Economics. That's down from the reading of 49.4 posted in July, and it remained below the index score of 50 that indicates contraction.

India's manufacturing PMI rose slightly in August after falling in July, results of a survey by Markit Economics and ABN AMRO revealed. The ABN AMRO manufacturing PMI rose to 57.9 in August from 57.8 in July. The latest increase in PMI reflected the sharp rise in output and new orders. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Dutch Consumer Spending Eases In June

Monday, the Central Bureau of Statistics announced that the Dutch consumer spending increased price adjusted 1.3% year-on-year in June, marking a slower pace than the 2.9% and 2.8% recorded in May and April, respectively.

According to the statistical office, spending on durable goods rose 1.1% in June, smaller compared with May's 6.7%. At the same time, spending on services grew 2.4%, after rising 3.2% in May.

In the second quarter, the Dutch consumer spending rose 2.3% year-on-year, slightly less than the 2.4% in the first quarter. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved

South Korean won declines to new multi-year low against US dollar

Against the US dollar, the South Korean won traded down during early Asian deals on Monday. At about 9:55 pm ET, the won touched 1102.90 per dollar, compared to 1081.50 hit late New York Friday. This set a new multi-year low for the South Korean currency.

Imports in South Korea increased 37.0 percent on year in August, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said on today in a statement. That was higher than the 33.5 percent annual gain that analysts had been expecting, but it was less than the 47.2 percent jump in July. Exports were up 20.6 on year, coming in less than forecasts that had called for a 22.7 percent annual increase, the data showed. Exports were up 36.0 percent on year in July. Copyright(c) 2008 RealTimeTraders.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved