DJIA chart reading : side way range bound little upside biased..
Hang Seng chart reading : downside biased.
Asia shares steady, firm dollar weighs on oil
SINGAPORE, May 17 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks held steady after early losses on signs of a slowdown in the U.S. economic recovery and oil fell for a second session as the dollar edged higher on euro debt concerns. "All eyes are now on commodities," said Takashi Ohba, a senior strategist at Okasan Securities. "Normally falls in commodities would be considered positive for the economy, but these days that market has become a barometer for risk-taking -- commodities are lower, so everyone is in a 'risk-off' mood."
Housing Starts in U.S. Unexpectedly Fall to 523,000 Pace; Permits Decline (Source: Bloomberg)
Housings starts in the U.S. unexpectedly fell in April as flooding and tornadoes in the South shut down construction sites and homebuilders continued to struggle almost two years into an economic recovery.
U.S. Industrial Production Stalls on Auto Disruption; Housing Starts Drop (Source: Bloomberg)
Industrial production in the U.S. unexpectedly stalled in April and housing starts dropped, posing hurdles to a rebound from the first quarter’s economic slowdown.
NY manufacturing growth slowest in 5 months in May
NEW YORK, May 16 (Reuters) - Manufacturing in New York State grew at its slowest pace in five months in May, while U.S. homebuilders remained deeply pessimistic as buyers stayed away from the market, data released on Monday showed.
But even as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that general business conditions of its "Empire State" index fell to the lowest level since last December, there were signs of underlying strength. A gauge of employment rose to the highest level in seven years, and economists said the data likely suggested more of a soft patch in the recovery than a slowdown.
China Trims U.S. Bond Holdings for Fifth Month as Debt Approaches Ceiling (Source: Bloomberg)
China, the biggest foreign owner of U.S. government debt, trimmed its holdings of Treasuries for a fifth straight month in March as lawmakers debate how to expand borrowing after reaching a statutory threshold. The Asian nation owns $1.145 trillion of the debt, down $9 billion, or less than 1 percent, from the previous month, according to Treasury data released yesterday. The holdings reached a record $1.175 trillion in October.
Foreign Investment in China Rises 15% as Consumers Lure Starbucks, Disney (Source: Bloomberg)
Foreign direct investment in China climbed 15 percent in April as companies including Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) and Walt Disney Co. expand to tap rising incomes in the world’s fastest-growing major economy. Investment rose to $8.5 billion, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement in Beijing today. The increase compared with a 33 percent gain in March. For the first four months, the total was $38.8 billion, a gain of 26 percent.
Yen Falls to One-Week Low on GDP Report (Source: Bloomberg)
The yen touched a one-week low against the euro before a report tomorrow forecast to show Japan’s economy contracted in the first quarter.
Japan Stocks Rise on Weaker Yen; Tokyo Electric Advances on Nuclear Plans (Source: Bloomberg)
Japan’s Topix index of stocks rose for the first time in five days as the yen weakened and after Tokyo Electric Power Co. announced a revised plan for stabilizing its stricken Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear-power plant.
German Investor Confidence Drops More Than Forecast on Prices, Debt Crisis (Source: Bloomberg)
German investor confidence declined for a third month in May as faster inflation threatened to curb consumer spending and Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis worsened. The ZEW Center for European Economic Research in Mannheim said its index of investor and analyst expectations, which aims to predict developments six months in advance, fell to 3.1 from 7.6 in April. Economists expected a drop to 4.5, according to the median of 31 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey.
April Inflation Accelerates More Than Forecast to Fastest Pace Since 2008 (Source: Bloomberg)
U.K. inflation accelerated more than economists forecast in April to the fastest since October 2008, forcing Bank of England Governor Mervyn King to explain publicly why officials haven’t raised interest rates yet. Consumer prices rose 4.5 percent in April after a 4 percent increase in March, data today showed. The median forecast of 32 economists in a Bloomberg News survey was 4.1 percent. Core inflation quickened to the fastest in at least 14 years. King said in a letter to Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne that the surge is being driven by higher sales tax and increases in energy and import prices.
Bank of Korea’s Kim Says Monetary Policy Aims to Prevent Lending Excesses (Source: Bloomberg)
Bank of Korea Governor Kim Choong Soo said that the central bank will manage monetary policy carefully in order to avoid creating incentives for excessive borrowing by households or companies.
Australia Central Bank Foresees Need for Higher Rates to Contain Inflation (Source: Bloomberg)
Australia’s Treasury secretary said the local currency will stay elevated “for some time,” a rise the central bank signaled would help contain inflation spurred by the nation’s biggest mining-investment boom. “The Australian dollar, which is currently at record levels, can be expected to move roughly in line with the terms of trade over the longer term,” Martin Parkinson, the Treasury’s top bureaucrat, said in a speech today in Sydney, referring to a measure of export income. “It is therefore expected to also remain persistently high for some time.”
Australian Dollar Maintains Gain on Speculation Wage Growth Accelerated (Source: Bloomberg)
The Australian dollar held onto yesterday’s gains versus the greenback before a government report today that economists said will show wages grew at a faster pace in the first quarter.
FOREX-Euro off 7-week lows; investors jittery on Greece
LONDON, May 17 (Reuters) - The euro pulled away from a seven-week low against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, but remained vulnerable on the downside as investors looked at opportunities to trim bullish bets while uncertainty over Greek debt lingers.
The yen was under broad pressure on talk of merger and acquisition flows, while sterling jumped against the U.S. dollar and the euro after UK inflation leapt in April to its highest annual rate since October 2008.
No comments:
Post a Comment