---------------------------------------------------------------- Snapshot at: 07:31 / 2031 GMT ---------------------------------------------------------------- Stock Markets
NetChng
NetChng S&P/ASX 200
5,785.79 +11.79 NZSX 50
7,151.99 +20.69 DJIA
20,934.55 -15.55 Nikkei
19,590.14 +12.76 NASDAQ
5,900.76 +0.71 FTSE
7,415.95 +47.31 S&P 500
2,381.38 -3.88 Hang Seng
24,288.28 +495.43 SPI 200 Fut
5,777.00 -8.00 STI
3,163.52 +26.09 SSEC
3,269.54 +27.78 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Bonds
NetChg
NetChg AU 10 YR Bond
2.874 +0.050 US 10 YR Bond
2.537 +0.033 NZ 10 YR Bond
3.320 +0.035 US 30 YR Bond
3.147 +0.045 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Currencies
1700GMT
1700GMT AUD US$
0.7669 0.7691 NZD US$
0.6980 0.6998 EUR US$
1.0763 1.0727 Yen US$
113.27 113.26 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Commodities Gold (Lon)
1,229.35
Silver (Lon)
17.32 Gold (NY)
1,218.65
Light Crude
48.78 TRJCRB Index
184.04 +0.25 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Overnight market action with latest New York figures.
EQUITIES
NEW YORK - U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday pressured by healthcare shares as traders cashed-in gains from one of the best performing sectors so far this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 15.55 points, or 0.07 percent, to 20,934.55, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 3.88 points, or 0.16 percent, to 2,381.38 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added 0.71 points, or 0.01 percent, to 5,900.76.
For a full report, double click on .N
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LONDON - UK shares rose to new record highs on Thursday, helped by a surge in commodities-related stocks, but pared some gains after a Bank of England (BoE) policymaker voted for a rate hike.
The blue chip FTSE 100 .FTSE index rose 0.6 percent, still ending at its highest level on record, while mid caps .FTMC gained 0.3 percent, ending below the all-time high hit during the session.
For a full report, double click on .L
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TOKYO - apanese stocks eked out small gains in choppy trade on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve hiked U.S. interest rates, but signalled no pick-up in the pace of tightening.
The Nikkei .N225 rose 0.1 percent to 19,590.14 points, after trading in negative territory earlier in the session.
For a full report, double click on .T
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SYDNEY - Australian shares are set to open a touch lower on Friday, tracking Wall Street lower, with some profit-taking likely in the big miners following three days of solid gains.
Local share price index futures YAPcm1 slipped 0.1 percent to 5,777.0, 8.8 points below the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index .AXJO close. The benchmark rose 0.2 percent on Thursday.
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FOREIGN EXCHANGE
NEW YORK - The dollar dropped to a five-week low against a basket of currencies on Thursday, still reeling from the previous session, when a statement from the U.S. Federal Reserve failed to signal a much faster pace of monetary policy tightening.
In late trading, the dollar index fell 0.4 percent to 100.37 .DXY . It slid to as low as 100.35, its weakest level since Feb 9. Against the yen, the dollar slipped to 113.28 yen, down 0.1 percent, after earlier falling to a two-week trough.
For a full report, double click on USD/
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TREASURIES
NEW YORK - U.S. Treasury yields rose on Thursday from more than one-week lows on the view that they had fallen too sharply in the prior session after the Federal Reserve maintained its outlook for only a gradual pace of interest rate increases this year.
U.S. 30-year bonds US30YT=RR fell 19/32 in price, and yields rose to 3.134 percent from 3.102 percent. Yields hit a session high of 3.156 percent in afternoon U.S. trading.
Two-year notes US2YT=RR , which are considered most vulnerable to Fed policy, were down slightly in price, while yields increased to 1.324 percent from 1.316 percent.
For a full report, double click on US/
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COMMODITIES
GOLD
NEW YORK/LONDON - Gold rallied for the second straight session on Thursday, climbing to its highest level in over a week after the U.S. central bank signaled only gradual rate tightening and the dollar slid to its lowest in five weeks.
Spot gold XAU= gained 0.7 percent at $1,227.43 an ounce by 3:03 p.m. EDT (1903 GMT), after touching $1,233.13, the highest since March 6. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for April delivery settled up 2.2 percent at $1,227.10.
For a full report, double click on GOL/
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BASE METALS
LONDON - Copper rose for a fifth session on Thursday as stoppages at three of the world's biggest mines raised supply concerns and a weaker dollar made metals cheaper for holders of foreign currencies.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 closed up 0.7 percent at $5,908 a tonne. In other metals, lead CMPB3 closed down 0.2 percent at $2,243 a tonne and zinc CMZN3 finished 0.8 percent higher at $2,829. Aluminium CMAL3 closed 0.7 percent higher at $1,900, nickel CMNI3 rose 0.1 percent to $10,215 and tin CMSN3 ended up 1.4 percent at $20,150.
For a full report, double click on MET/L
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OIL
NEW YORK - Oil prices slipped on Thursday, as support from a weaker dollar was offset by U.S. crude inventories near record high levels that again raised concerns whether OPEC-led output cuts were starting to drain a global glut.
Brent crude LCOc1 ended the session 7 cents lower at $51.74 a barrel, recovering from Tuesday's drop to $50.25, its lowest since Nov. 30 when OPEC announced its supply accord. The price is still nearly $7 below January's post-deal peak of $58.37.
U.S. light crude CLc1 settled 11 cents lower at $48.75 a barrel, but still above the three-month low hit on Tuesday.
For a full report, double click on O/R
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