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Australia Q2 Business Inventories -3.4%
Posted in on 11:31 AM by S & SNikkei turns negative as Chinese stocks are dumped
Posted in on 11:31 AM by S & SSterling remains under selling pressure
Posted in on 11:28 AM by S & SGBP/USD Current Price: 1.6269. Pound remains under selling pressure after beginning the week clearly under 1.6300 level. Hovering around 1.6275 level, pair could attempt a short term recovery in the next hours, as 20 SMA in 4 hours charts around 1.6250 is holding the downside.
“Bigger time frames remain bearish expect the upside to remain limited by 1.6360 highs of past Friday, “ said
Support levels: 1.6250 1.6210 1.6160. Resistance levels: 1.6300 1.6330 1.6360.
GBP/USD (Aug 31 at 05:26 GMT)
1.6242/45 (-0.12%)
H 1.63 L 1.6223
S3 | S2 | S1 | R1 | R2 | R3 |
1.6161 | 1.6201 | 1.6242 | 1.6255 | 1.6296 | 1.6337 |
[?]Trend Index | [?]OB/OS Index |
Neutral | Neutral |
Data updated on Aug 31 at 05:20 (15-minute timeframe) |
[ View GBP/USD Technical Studies ]
EURUSD holds up despite EURJPY selling
Posted in on 11:27 AM by S & SASIA MARKETS: Japan Undoes Rally; Market Mulls Election Impact
Posted in on 11:25 AM by S & SThe Nikkei 225 Stock Average ended the morning down 0.4% after opening sharply higher and rising to an 11-month intraday high in the first hour of trading. The broader Topix index of all issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's First Section was down 0.3%.
In other regional markets, South Korea's Kospi Composite was down 1%, and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 and New Zealand's NZX-50 % were both up 0.1%.
The Shanghai Composite tumbled 4.7% in morning trade over concerns of a fall in bank lending, which helped drag Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index down 2%.
The DPJ won 308 seats, a vast majority of the 480 seats in the lower house of parliament, compared with 115 seats previously. The LDP's representation fell to 119 seats from 300, and the LDP's coalition partner New Komeito's seats fell to 21 from 31.
The DPJ's victory over the LDP -- which has run the country since 1955 for all but a few months -- was widely expected. But analysts said the large margin of victory was interpreted as an initially positive sign, though not positive enough to sustain the gains in a market some say already shows signs of overheating.
"For the stock markets, worried about delays to important policies addressing population trends, the fact that the people have expeditiously given power to politicians is better over the long term than a narrow win," said Naoki Kamiyama, chief strategist at Deutsche Bank in Tokyo.
Kamiyama said that the Topix had shot up by around 300 points after the last election in September 2005, when former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi sought and received a mandate to reform Japan's economy. But, he said, this time could be different.
"Topix valuations are quite high at present, and market expectations regarding the economy are weak. Unless investors allocate greater resources to stocks, Japanese shares would not appear to have much upward leeway," he said in a research note early Monday.
"A switch in long-term political expectations to the positive would likely spur a rise in the long-term trading range. Still, we believe it will take at least a year to achieve a visible impact even with solid leadership," said Kamiyama.
Beneficiaries of 'overwhelming mandate'
The DPJ has an ambitious agenda of increasing social programs -- including paying cash allowances of more than $3,000 per child to families and abolishing highway tolls -- much of which is meant to shift Japan to more a domestic-demand-led economy.
"On the assumption that the DPJ will use its overwhelming mandate to rule at least in general accordance with its election platform, domestic and green stocks from health care, child care, and education to trucking, wind power, and batteries should benefit. Railroads, construction firms, general contractors, and tobacco could be on the losing side," said Cantor Fitzgerald economist Uwe Parpart.
Parpart said potential gainers include Watami Co. , a restaurant operator that also manages nursing-care facilities and makes box lunches for senior citizens. Other picks include household products maker Kao Corp. and transport firm Nippon Express Co. ;
Japan Wind Development Co. could benefit from the DPJ's emphasis on seeking green solutions and alternative energy sources. Honda Motor Co. (HMC) could also benefit from the DPJ's expected continuation of government incentives to buy hybrid cars. Battery maker GS Yuasa Corp. "may be worth another look," Parpart said.
"It will be a rough ride, but at least initially will be stocks-positive and bonds-bearish, as the DPJ attempts to revive domestic demand while ruling out new taxes to rein in growth of the huge public debt," Parpart said in emailed comments.
More active role
A stronger yen also helped knock some of the wind out of the stock market's earlier rally.
The dollar was buying 92.69 yen, down from 93.64 yen in late North American trading on Friday.
In the longer term, one factor to which currency-market investors should pay attention is the DPJ's vow to take a more active role in policy-making.
The DPJ party leader Yukio Hatoyama, who will likely replace the LDP's Taro Aso as Japan's next prime minister, pledged ahead of the election that his government would seek to temper the power of Japan's bureaucrats, who have traditionally held great sway over formulating policy.
While ministers are politically appointed, there are often viewed as wielding less power than the vice ministers, who rise up through the bureaucratic ranks.
However, such a shift would likely take time, blunting its immediate market impact.
"One cannot expect the Mandarins of the bureaucracy to simply roll over for the incoming government, so important drivers for the Japanese yen in the period ahead will likely be the generalized risk-appetite of global investors and the machinations around the fiscal half-year end for Japanese companies" at the end of September, said Marc Chandler, head of global currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman in New York, in emailed comments.
Japan's Auto Exports -45.1% On Year In Jul
Posted in on 11:23 AM by S & SVehicle exports totaled 339,652 vehicles in the month, down from 619,174 vehicles in the same month last year, the association said in a press release.
UPDATE: Asian Shares Fall; Japan Erases Rise,China Mkt Drops
Posted in on 11:22 AM by S & S"Tokyo reacted to the change in government with a big spike up before the reality of their economic situation started to bite," said Macquarie Private Wealth Associate Director David Halliday.
Japan's Nikkei 225 was down 0.1% after initially rising more than 2.0% to its highest intraday level for this year. The early gains were fueled by the Democratic Party of Japan win's of more than 300 of the 480 seats in the Lower House on Sunday, pushing out the Liberal Democratic Party after 54 years of nearly uninterrupted rule.
The election outcome also pushed the Japanese yen sharply higher.
"The questions that linger now is if the DPJ could deliver their lofty election promises and what the results mean for Japan's policies, including foreign relations and foreign exchange policies," said UBS analysts in a note.
Shares in China dropped sharply, with the Shanghai Composite trading down 5.4%, as Metallurgical Corp. of China's share offer aggravated supply concerns and as talk of a slowdown in lending growth continued to weigh on sentiment.
The declines on the mainland weighed on regional stock markets, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shedding 2.1%.
"On one hand, new share supply is hanging over the (Shanghai) market, while on the other, liquidity isn't that supportive as new loan growth may decline further in August," said Wang Junqing at Guosen Securities.
Banks were leading the losers after China Merchants Bank reported a wider-than-expected 38% drop in first-half net profit. China Merchants Bank's A-shares fell 4.5%, while its Hong Kong-listed shares shed 4.0%.
In other markets, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 traded down 0.2% after earlier touching its highest level since October 2008. South Korea's Kospi Composite was down 1.2%, Singapore's Straits Times Index shed 0.9%, Taiwan's Taiex fell 0.5% and Indonesian shares lost 1.7%. New Zealand's NZX-50 slipped 0.4%. Markets in Malaysia and the Philippines were closed.
The Industrial Average's 0.4% slip on Friday also damped regional sentiment. DJIA futures were recently 50 points lower in screen trade.
Japanese exporters were pulled lower by the strength in the yen, with the auto stocks among hardest hit. Toyota Motor was down 1.0%, while Honda Motor fell 1.7%.
Bucking the trend, shares of Japanese baby goods makers gained on the DPJ's win, as the party's policy proposals included allowances for raising children. Pigeon Corp. was up 3.2% and Uni-Charm Corp. 0.6% higher.
In Australia, gains in banks offset declines in some resource plays. ANZ added 4.2% as the growth of loan impairments slowed. National Australia Bank rose 1.6%. But BHP Billiton slipped 0.2% and Rio Tinto lost 1.3%.
Harvey Norman Holdings continued to surge after Friday's strong results, helped by ratings and target-price upgrades from brokers. The shares were up 5.6%
The Korean stock market's fall was led by financial counters. KB Financial was down 2.6% while Woori Finance lost 2.5%.
"I think the stock market needs to take a break after recent sharp gains. Investors will likely spend some time judging whether the pace of the global economic recovery is fast enough to justify the rapid gains in stocks," said Lee Jin-woo at Mirae Asset Securities. But he expected the depth of the correction to be small given the ongoing optimism for local firms' earnings to improve.
Hyundai Steel was up 4.0% after news it had hiked prices of its main steel products, and sold 12.85 million shares of Hyundai Motor to Hyundai Mobis.
In foreign exchange markets, the U.S. dollar was at Y92.63, from Y93.61 in New York on Friday, going below Y93.00 for the first time since July as exporters sold the dollar.
Hideki Amikura, deputy general manager at Nomura Trust and Banking, said the election result was "behind some of the yen-buying this morning, since the DPJ seems more tolerant of a stronger yen as the party is more focused on expanding domestic demand."
He also cited statements on the benefits of a strong yen from "the brain of the DPJ" - key party advisor Eisuke Sakakibara, who was a possible candidate for a government post. Sakakibara is a former top finance ministry currency bureaucrat, and was known as "Mr. Yen" for his ability to move the markets.
Although the landslide win was a watershed event, Brown Brothers Harriman said: "One cannot expect the Mandarins of the bureaucracy to simply roll over for the incoming government, so important drivers for the yen in the period ahead will likely be the generalized risk-appetite of global investors and the machinations around the fiscal half year end for Japanese companies."
The yen was also gaining ground against the euro, which was at Y132.38, from Y133.86 in New York. The single currency was lower against the U.S. dollar at $1.4288 from $1.4300.
The Japanese government bond market was supported by the downturn in the Tokyo stock market. The 10-year cash JGB yield was down one basis point at 1.295%, and the lead JGB futures contracts was up 0.17 at 139.20.
Spot gold was down $1.60 at $954.00 per troy ounce from New York Friday. The October Nymex crude oil futures contract down 45 cents at $72.99 per barrel on Globex.
LME base metals were not being quoted in electronic markets as the London Metals Exchange is shut on Monday, for a U.K. bank holiday.
Asian Forex Wrap
Posted in on 11:20 AM by S & SOIL DATA: Japan July Oil Product Output Down 11% On Year
Posted in on 11:20 AM by S & SEnd-month stocks of oil products decreased by 1.9% compared with end-July 2008 stocks, to 11.79 million kiloliters, according to METI.
OIL DATA: Japan's July Crude Imports Fall 18% On Year -METI
Posted in on 11:19 AM by S & SCrude imports from the Middle East in the same month accounted for 89% of the total, down 1.5 percentage points from a year earlier, and up from 86% in June.
JPY crosses holding bid tone in early Tokyo
Posted in on 11:12 AM by S & SNikkei opens up 0.7%, wait and see effect of poor data
Posted in on 11:11 AM by S & SDollar reverses trend on thin trade
Posted in on 11:10 AM by S & SDollar sell off across the board in late America, has left majors set for another run higher against greenback that reversed early gains and close strongly down across the board. Despite the almost exaggerated rally more due to lack of liquidity and summer vacations than anything else, majors remain inside the same ranges we are seeing since early June.
EUR/USD now at 1.4360 area, with 1.4406 and 1.4445, yearly high as immediate resistance levels, while under 1.4340 downside will come back into play; GBP/USD remains weak enough to hold under 1.6280/1.6300 area with supports at 1.6260 and 1.6220. USD/JPY likely to remain bearish despite local stocks are set to rise, ahead of next Sunday general elections.
EUR/USD (Aug 28 at 05:08 GMT)
1.4356/58 (0.07%)
H 1.4378 L 1.4344
S3 | S2 | S1 | R1 | R2 | R3 |
1.4283 | 1.4319 | 1.4355 | 1.4365 | 1.4401 | 1.4437 |
[?]Trend Index | [?]OB/OS Index |
Neutral | Neutral |
Data updated on Aug 28 at 04:40 (15-minute timeframe) |
[ View EUR/USD Technical Studies ]
NewZealand July New Dwelling Consents rise 5%
Posted in on 11:10 AM by S & SAsian Shares On The Rise; Korean Tech Stks Supported By Dell
Posted in on 11:08 AM by S & SJapan's Nikkei 225 was up 0.7% with South Korea's Kospi Composite up 0.8% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.7%. New Zealand's NZX-50 was 0.8% higher. Industrial Average futures were recently eight points lower in screen trade.
"As profit-taking kicked in yesterday, positive external cues like U.S. stocks and crude futures can more easily lift the market," said Mizuho Securities market analyst Yukio Takahashi.
Front-month Nymex crude futures rose $1.06 in New York and were up another 38 cents at $72.87 a barrel in electronic trade in Asia, helping energy-related stocks. In Tokyo, Inpex gained 1.5%, while Australia's Woodside was up 1.3%.
"Oil (inventories) are still at very high levels but improving demand amid continued supply tightness should accelerate the pace of erosion of the inventory overhang, lending support to prices," said Barclays Capital.
But some doubted Asian shares would gain much more before the weekend. "I think there will be some caution before U.S. funds come back from holidays next week," said Patersons senior private client adviser Chris Blair, adding "we don't know how they are going to react (to improved economic data and share market strength."
Elsewhere in Japan, All Nippon Airways gained 1.4% after Boeing said it would make its inaugural test flight for the 787 Dreamliner at the end of the year and deliver its first plane at the end of 2010. Analysts said this eased some uncertainty about the timeline for the Dreamliners.
In Korea, tech shares were broadly higher with Samsung Electronics up 2.0% and Hynix up 3.1%. After-hours in the U.S., Dell said its quarterly profit fell 23% as it continued to be squeezed by depressed corporate spending and plunging PC prices, but executives said they were seeing signs the PC industry was beginning to recover. Dell gained 3.2% in the U.S. in late trading.
Financial stocks in Seoul tracked gains in their U.S. peers, with Shinhan Financial up 1.1%.
In Australian, Sims Metal Management was down 1.6% while Caltex fell 2.1%, with news of big dividend cuts from both companies.
Brambles rose 1.2% after an Australian Financial Review report it had been approached with an offer to merge with Paul Little's Toll Holdings. Toll was up 4.1%.
There was another China/Australia deal on the resources front, with Aquila Resources up 9.8% on news it had entered into a strategic cooperation agreement with China's largest steel mill, Baosteel Group Corp, to fast track developments of its iron ore, coal and manganese projects. Baosteel would invest up to A$285.6 million in Aquila via a placement of up to 43.95 million shares at A$6.50 each, to give it a 15% stake.
In New Zealand, Auckland Airport rose 2.9% after its earnings report. "We've had enough disappointing results in New Zealand, so it's good to see there were no nasty surprises in Auckland Airport's earnings," said Dave Schaper, an adviser at Forsyth Barr.
Nuplex continued Thursday's rally on better-than-expected earnings, rising another 7.7%, while Telecom rose 2.2% and Air New Zealand was 2.4% higher.
In foreign exchange markets the euro was at Y134.77 from Y134.22 in New York, and at $1.4363, from $1.4362. The U.S. dollar was at Y93.79, from Y93.50. Traders in Tokyo said Japanese importers were buying both the U.S. dollar and the euro against the yen, but the market was otherwise fairly quiet.
Japanese government bonds were lower, tracking falls in U.S. long-end Treasurys in New York, with the lead September futures contract at 138.87, down 0.19 points.
LME metals were higher, with three-month copper up 2.4% vs from the London kerb at $6,420 a metric ton, aided by a rise in the euro in late U.S. trade. Spot gold was at $949.75 per troy ounce, up $1.55 from the New York close.
AUDUSD retests overnight highs
Posted in on 11:07 AM by S & SEUR/USD Current Price: 1.4369
Posted in on 11:05 AM by S & SEUR/USD Current Price: 1.4369. Pair upside break due to thin market conditions late America, has left the pair consolidating above 1.4340 now strong support area, and with doors open for further rises, as 4 hours charts have indicators support the bias.
“A bit exhausted in the hourly, some consolidation could be seen during next hours, ahead of another break out,” said Only under 1.4300 pair can regain downside strength.
Support levels: 1.4340 1.4300 1.4250. Resistance levels 1.4380 1.4410 1.4445.
EUR/USD (Aug 28 at 05:04 GMT)
1.4360/64 (0.10%)
H 1.4378 L 1.4344
S3 | S2 | S1 | R1 | R2 | R3 |
1.4283 | 1.4319 | 1.4355 | 1.4365 | 1.4401 | 1.4437 |
[?]Trend Index | [?]OB/OS Index |
Neutral | Neutral |
Data updated on Aug 28 at 04:40 (15-minute timeframe) |
[ View EUR/USD Technical Studies ]