Get 40% Off
These stocks are up over 10% post earnings. Did you spot the buying opportunity? Our AI did.Read how

GLOBAL MARKETS-Greek stocks bashed on return, China woes hurt commodities

Published 03/08/2015, 11:22 pm
© Reuters.  GLOBAL MARKETS-Greek stocks bashed on return, China woes hurt commodities

* July PMI in China curbs risk sentiment

* Commodities weaken, crude extends losses

* Dollar rebounds from weak U.S. wages data

* ISM data in focus

* Greek stocks slump 17 percent, others in Europe steady

By Marc Jones

LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Weak data from China helped push oil prices to their lowest in six months on Monday, knocking the Canadian dollar, and sent Asian stocks close to their 2015 lows.

But futures markets pointed to major share indices making a steady start to August. The S&P 500 ESc1 , Dow Jones Industrial 1YMc1 and Nazdaq NQc1 markets all looked set to open little changed .N , shrugging off the troubles of Greece whose stock market slumped as it reopened after being shut for five weeks.

Oil's troubles sent Canada's dollar to its lowest in more than a decade as Wall Street waited for manufacturing data after some soft pre-market consumption and inflation data ID:nLNN3JEBDW added to Friday's weaker-than-expected wage figures. ECONG7

Data overnight showed China's factory activity contracted by the most in two years ID:nS7N0XJ01D , feeding a three-month-old sell-off in commodity and emerging markets.

Brent oil fell to $51 a barrel, its lowest since the end of January. Industrial metal copper CMCU3 dropped to its weakest in six years and gold dipped to $1,093 an ounce XAU= after its worst month in two years. GOL/ MEL/ O/R

"It's just very, very poor sentiment across the commodities sectors at the moment," said Nic Brown, head of commodities research at Natixis in London.

3rd party Ad. Not an offer or recommendation by Investing.com. See disclosure here or remove ads .

"While concerns about China remain uppermost in the market's mind and we are sitting here waiting for the first Fed rate hike, it just doesn't want to go up."

In Athens, stocks .ATG plunged 17 percent as the market reopened. The euro EUR= and lower-rated government bonds also saw some mild selling. GVD/EUR

But overall euro zone factory activity grew faster than previously thought in July. ID:nL9N0YN00C The Netherlands, Spain and Italy all reported healthy growth - Italy's expansion was its best in more than four years.

"Policymakers will be reassured by the robust growth rates seen in these countries and the resilience of the manufacturing sector as a whole," said Chris Williamson, chief economist at survey compiler Markit. "Growth is likely to pick up again now that Greece has jumped its latest hurdle."

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 was 0.8 percent higher by 1245 GMT. Gains of 1 and 0.7 percent in Frankfurt .GDAXI and Paris FCHI were spurred on by upbeat results from HSBC HSBA.L , Commerzbank (XETRA:CBKG) CBKG.DEHSBC and Heineken HEIN.AS and compensated for a flat London FTSE .FTSE as its mining companies and oil firms suffered. .SXPP .EU

<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Global assets in 2015

http://link.reuters.com/dub25t

Chinese stocks

http://link.reuters.com/qan35w

European bourses in 2015

http://link.reuters.com/pap87v

Currencies vs dollar

http://link.reuters.com/tak27s

World interest rates:

http://link.reuters.com/xyb96s

Oil prices

http://link.reuters.com/beb23v

Commodities performance

http://link.reuters.com/rac73w

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>

GREAT FALL OF CHINA

China's poor data overnight had made it another difficult day for Asian markets.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS fell more than 1 percent to take it close to early July's lowest level of the year. ID:nL3N10E01I

3rd party Ad. Not an offer or recommendation by Investing.com. See disclosure here or remove ads .

Shanghai shares shed 1.1 percent .SSEC , Japan's Nikkei .N225 slid 0.2 percent and South Korea's Kospi .KS11 fell 1 percent. Australian stocks .AXJO dropped 0.4 percent.

Net foreign selling from emerging Asia has reached nearly $10 billion over the past two months. Only India has seen minor inflows.

Russia's rouble racked up some of the day's biggest losses. It fell 1.4 percent to its weakest since mid-March RUB= following an interest rate cut last week and as oil, Russia's biggest export, slipped. EMRG/FRX

The dollar began to firm again after sliding on Friday's U.S. wage growth data. Its broader trend has been upwards, after the Federal Reserve last week left the door open for a rate increase in September, and it was last at 124.14 yen JPY= and $1.0970 to the euro EUR= . ID:L1N1092AW

The dollar has gained 7.75 percent so far this year against the world's main trading currencies .DXY , after a 12.8 percent rise last year.

Its "recent rally may just be getting started," according to research from the BlackRock Investment Institute.

"Since the 1970s when the Bretton Woods fixed-currency regime ended and currencies began floating, a typical dollar rally has lasted roughly six to seven years," said Russ Koesterich, BlackRock global investment strategist.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.