Monday 8 October 2012

October 8, 2012 Financial Market Summary


At 0500 BST today, FTSE 100 futures are trading marginally lower.
At 0500 BST today, German DAX Xetra 30 futures are trading 6.6 points down, while French CAC-40 futures are trading marginally lower.
At 0500 BST today, DJIA futures are trading 24.0 points down.
Markets in Japan were closed on account of public holiday.
In Asia, crude oil for November delivery is trading 0.5% or $0.42 lower at $89.45 per barrel.
At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading 0.2% lower against the USD at $1.6113, 0.1% higher against the EUR at €1.2396, and 0.2% lower against the JPY at ¥126.69.
US Market Snapshot
At 0500 BST today, DJIA futures are trading 24.0 points down.
On Friday, DJIA edged up 0.3%, to end at 13,610.2. NASDAQ slid 0.4%, to close at 3,136.2. S&P 500 eased marginally to settle at 1,460.9.
US markets closed mixed on Friday, as early euphoria over a better-than-expected September jobs report faded amid renewed concern about the eurozone debt crisis.
First Solar slumped 11.0%, after a broker downgraded the stock to “Negative” from “Positive”, citing reliability related issues of module-junction box. Zynga lost 11.9%, as it cut its full-year earnings and revenue outlook late Thursday.
Apple lost 2.1%, apparently weighed down by an encouraging quarterly profit posted by its rival, Samsung.  Hewlett-Packard continued its slide, dropping 1.4%, after a broker downgraded its rating on the stock to “Neutral” from “Buy”.
However, Home Depot rose 2.4%, hitting a new 52-week high, as Minyanville named it as one of the top buys in the services sector. Boeing added 1.4%, after it delivered 149 commercial air-planes in the third quarter, a sharp rise from a year ago.
After the closing bell, Celadon Group rose 1.7%, as its projected first-quarter earnings that surpassed market expectations.
Asian Market Snapshot
Asian markets are trading lower this morning, as investors exercised caution before a meeting of the European finance ministers at Luxembourg, aimed to ease the European debt crisis.
In Hong Kong, Prada SpA lost values, as China's retail sales growth slowed during the Golden Week holiday. SIM Technology Group tumbled as it mulled to raise $22.7 million. ZTE Corp paced losses, as a US congressional investigation concluded that the company posed a security threat to the US and should be barred from US contracts and acquisitions.
In South Korea, Samsung Electronics paced losses, as a survey of US consumers revealed that the patent ruling in a legal-row with Apple had a mostly-negative impact on Samsung’s long-term competitive position in smart-phones and tablets.
Japanese markets were closed on account of public holiday. Hang Seng is trading 0.7% down, at 20,855.9. Kospi is trading 0.7% lower, at 1,980.5.
UK Market Snapshot
At 0500 BST today, FTSE 100 futures are trading marginally lower.
Axa Plc is considering plans to branch into legal services to remain competitive in the market and continue to offer customers choice.
Britain’s defence secretary has warned that the French and German governments must reduce their stakes in EADS for the UK to allow a proposed merger with BAE Systems Plc.
European Market Snapshot
At 0500 BST today, German DAX Xetra 30 futures are trading 6.6 points down, while French CAC-40 futures are trading marginally lower.
According to “Welt am Sonntag”, BMW AG's motorcycle unit is mulling to improve vehicle sales both this year and in 2013 and is eyeing to expand its product portfolio and improve sales in Asia and America.
According to Reuters, PPR is preparing to sell its book and CD retailer Fnac and online fashion store La Redoute as part of a strategy to concentrate on business luxury and sports brands.
Commodities
In Asia, crude oil for November delivery is trading 0.5% or $0.42 lower at $89.45 per barrel.
On Friday, crude oil for November delivery fell 2.0% or $1.83 to $89.88 per barrel, as continued uncertainty about the European debt crisis overshadowed a report that showed surprise drop in the US unemployment rate. Additionally, there was no support for oil prices as fears that unrest in the Middle East and North Africa would lead to further supply problems begun to wane.
Gold for immediate delivery is trading 0.5% lower today, at $1,770.97 per ounce.
Gold for December delivery dropped 0.9% or $15.70 to $1,780.80 per ounce on Friday, as a dip in US unemployment rate in September weakened the case for any additional US Fed stimulus action, decreasing the demand for the yellow metal as an inflation hedge.
On Friday, copper 3-month futures fell 0.4% or $34.5, to close at $8,295.50 /MT. Aluminium 3-month futures rose 1.5% or $30.0, to close at $1,990.00 /MT.
Currencies
At 0400 BST today, the GBP is trading 0.2% lower against the USD at $1.6113, 0.1% higher against the EUR at €1.2396, and 0.2% lower against the JPY at ¥126.69.
The EUR is trading 0.3% lower against the USD at $1.2998 and 0.3% lower against the JPY at ¥102.22, ahead of reports due later in the day which are expected to show that German industrial production and exports dropped in August. Investors are also expected to remain watchful about the European Finance Ministers meet in Luxembourg today, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to visit Greece tomorrow.
The AUD is trading lower against the USD, before data due in the week which might show that unemployment in Australia increased in September.
On Friday, the USD ended lower against the EUR, as stronger-than-expected US economic data indicated that the world’s biggest economy is recovering and decreased demand for the dollar as a safe haven asset. The USD ended higher against the JPY.
However, the JPY traded higher earlier in the trading session, as the Bank of Japan kept its monetary policy unchanged and refrained from additional easing measures.
The CAD ended higher against the USD, after Canada reported strong jobs growth for September.
Macroeconomic Snapshot
On a quarterly basis, the GDP in eurozone fell 0.2% in the second quarter of the year, compared to a 0.3% drop in the previous quarter.
On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, German factory orders declined 1.3% in August, compared to 0.3% growth recorded in July.
US non-farm payroll employment rose by 114,000 in September, compared to an upwardly revised increase of 142,000 in August. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate eased to 7.8% in September from 8.1% recorded in August.
US consumer credit jumped $18.2 billion in August, compared to a revised fall of $2.45 billion recorded in July.
On a weekly basis, the US ECRI leading index’s annualized growth rate rose to 4.7% from 3.7% rise recorded in the previous week.
The US federal budget deficit shrank by $207 billion this fiscal year, but stayed above the $1 trillion mark.
Japan’s leading index rose to a seasonally adjusted 93.6 in August, from 93.0 in July.