WTI Drops a Second Day as OPEC Considers Sparing Three From Cut

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West Texas Intermediate crude fell for a second day as OPEC considered sparing three nations from potential output cuts when the group meets in Vienna this week.

Futures slid as much as 0.4 percent in New York. Iraq, Iran and Libya wouldnt have to trim supplies should the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries agree to a reduction, according to two people with knowledge of the proposal. This is not the first time the market is oversupplied, Saudi Arabias Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi said in the Austrian capital.

Oil has collapsed into a bear market as the U.S. pumps crude at the fastest rate in more than three decades amid signs of a supply glut. Some OPEC producers are resisting calls to reduce production while Venezuela and Ecuador seek action to support prices ahead of discussions on Nov. 27.

WTI for January delivery dropped as much as 31 cents to $75.47 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $75.68 at 10:06 a.m. Sydney time. The contract lost 73 cents to $75.78 yesterday. The volume of all futures traded was about 43 percent below the 100-day average. Prices have decreased 23 percent this year.

Brent for January settlement dropped 68 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $79.68 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange yesterday. The European benchmark crude ended the session at a premium of $3.90 to WTI.

Source: Bloomberg

Yen Approaches Seven-Year Low Before Kuroda Speaks Amid Stimulus

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The yen approached a seven-year low versus the dollar before Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda speaks today, as policy diverges from the Federal Reserve.

The euro maintained gains from yesterday versus its major peers after European Central Bank Governing Council member Jens Weidmann said expanding bond purchases to government debt would face œlegal hurdles. New Zealands dollar held its first decline in three days before a quarterly Reserve Bank survey of inflation expectations. The BOJ today releases minutes of its Oct. 31 meeting, when it surprised markets by expanding stimulus two days after the Fed ended its bond-buying program.

The yen slipped 0.1 percent to 118.43 per dollar at 8:47 a.m. in Tokyo from yesterday, when it fell 0.4 percent. It reached 118.98 on Nov. 20, the weakest since August 2007. The yen was little changed at 147.26 per euro, after yesterdays 0.8 percent slide. The euro traded at $1.2434 from $1.2442.

The BOJ last month lifted the annual target for enlarging the monetary base to 80 trillion yen ($675 billion), from 60 trillion yen to 70 trillion yen. The policy board voted to retain the plan at the end of a two-day meeting on Nov. 19. Kuroda is scheduled to speak at 10 a.m. in Nagoya today.

The Fed is moving to raise interest rates for the first time since 2006 after curtailing its quantitative-easing program. Futures traders predict theres a 50 percent chance rates will rise in September for the first time since 2006.

The New Zealand dollar was little changed at 78.60 U.S. cents, after weakening 0.3 percent yesterday.

Source : Bloomberg

Japan Stocks Gain With Dollar After U.S. Records as Oil Retreats

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The dollar gained against most peers, while Japanese stocks increased after records in New York amid global central-bank efforts to prop up economic growth. Oil retreated with Norways krone.

Japans Topix index climbed 0.7 percent by 9:11 a.m. in Tokyo, as the yen slipped 0.1 percent to 118.37. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.2 percent while a 1.9 percent drop by BHP Billiton Ltd. dragged Australias S&P/ASX 200 Index lower. Futures on the Standard & Poors 500 Index were little changed after the U.S. gauge and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at records. Norways currency weakened 0.3 percent while oil in New York slipped 0.2 percent.

Japanese markets resume after a holiday during which Chinas central bank cut interest rates. While gross domestic product growth in the three months through Sept. 30 is likely to be revised lower. A final reading on German third-quarter economic expansion is due after an unexpected increase in business confidence amid European Central Bank President Mario Draghis efforts to win support for more measures.

The S&P 500 has rebounded 11 percent from a six-month low last month. The gauge had plunged as much as 7.4 percent as concern grew Europe was leading a global growth slowdown. It has closed above its five-day moving average for 27 consecutive trading sessions, the longest such streak in history, according to Jonathan Krinsky, chief market technician at MKM Holdings LLC.

Source: Bloomberg

U.S. Stocks Extend Records, Europe Bonds Rise on Stimulus Bets

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U.S. stocks extended all-time highs and European bonds gained amid speculation the European Central Bank will buy government debt to support growth. Natural gas led commodities lower and oil retreated.

The Standard & Poors 500 Index rose 0.3 percent to an all-time high at 4 p.m. in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed less than 0.1 percent to extend a record, while the Russell 2000 Index of small companies rallied 1.2 percent to a July high. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index closed little changed as gains by banks offset a slump in resource producers. The yield on Spains 10-year bond fell four basis points to a record 1.97 percent. Natural gas slid the most since February, and crude oil fell before an OPEC meeting.

The S&P 500 advanced 1.2 percent last week as data signaled the U.S. economy is improving, ECB President Mario Draghi pledged to raise inflation as fast as possible and China unexpectedly cut interest rates. A gauge of German business confidence unexpectedly rose for the first time in seven months, a report showed today. Preliminary data from Markit Economics showed the U.S. services industries expanded at a slower pace than estimated this month. OPEC meets this week to determine production levels.

Source: Bloomberg

Europe Stocks End Little Changed as Miners Drop While Banks Rise

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European lenders pushed stocks to a two-month high, even as they pared gains in the final hour of trading amid a decline in miners and oil and gas companies.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.1 percent to 345.72 at the close of trading in London, after earlier jumping as much as 0.5 percent. The benchmark index gained 2.9 percent last week as Mario Draghi said the ECB needs to accelerate inflation and may broaden its asset-purchase program, while China cut key interest rates for the first time since 2012. Futures on the Euro Stoxx 50 Index rose 0.5 percent at 5:04 p.m. in London.

Banks in the Stoxx 600 advanced 1.3 percent as a group, contributing the most to the gain. Banco Santander SA added 2.5 percent and Societe Generale SA rose 2.1 percent. Spains IBEX 35 Index climbed 1.2 percent for the second-biggest increase among 18 western-European markets.

Source: Bloomberg