Dollar Climbs Toward 10-Year High on Fed Outlook; Ruble Drops

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The dollar headed for the highest level in more than a decade with the Federal Reserve the only central bank among developed nations considering raising interest rates this year as global rivals rush to ease policy.

The U.S. currency gained versus most major peers as the fewest Americans in almost 15 years filed applications for unemployment benefits. The ruble dropped as European Union officials discussed tightening sanctions against Russia. The Danish central bank cut interest rates for the third time in 10 days to defend the krone™s peg to the euro. The dollars of New Zealand and Australia, along with Turkey™s lira, fell amid speculation those nations may cut rates.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, a gauge of the currency™s performance against 10 major peers, rose 0.5 percent to 1,165.90 as of 3:33 p.m. New York time. It closed at 1,161.42 on Jan. 26, the highest in data going back to 2004.

The dollar gained 0.7 percent to 118.35 yen. It slipped 0.3 percent to $1.1319 per euro after reaching $1.1098 versus the common currency on Jan. 26, the strongest level since September 2003. The yen weakened 1 percent to 133.97 per euro.

Source : Bloomberg

Gold Tumbles With Silver by Most Since 2013 After U.S. Jobs Gain

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Gold futures fell the most in 13 months and silver posted the biggest plunge since June 2013 as signs of a robust U.S. labor market cut demand for haven assets.

The two most-traded gold options were bets on further declines, and prices for the contracts doubled. Aggregate futures trading was 79 percent above the 100-day average for this time of day, with silver 70 percent higher, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

The fewest Americans in almost 15 years filed applications for unemployment benefits in the week ended Jan. 24. Economic activity œhas been expanding at a solid pace, Federal Reserve officials said in a statement on Wednesday. The outlook is lowering the appeal of precious metals, which rallied this year amid speculation that the U.S. central bank would wait longer to raise interest rates because of slowing foreign economies.

On the Comex, gold futures for April delivery dropped 2.4 percent to settle at $1,255.90 an ounce at 1:40 p.m. in New York, the biggest decline for a most-active contract since Dec. 19, 2013.

Source : Bloomberg

Asian Stocks Advance to Extend First Monthly Gain Since October

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Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark index extending its firstly monthly gain since October, as Japanese shares climbed after the yen weakened against the dollar on a drop in U.S. jobless claims.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.3 percent to 140.91 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo. The gauge has risen 2.2 percent in January, led by a surge in Hong Kong shares. The European Central Bank unveiled a plan this month to join the Bank of Japan in unprecedented monetary easing.

Japan™s Topix index rose 1 percent as the yen traded at 118.28 per dollar after falling 0.6 percent yesterday. South Korea™s Kospi index and Australia™s S&P/ASX 200 Index each gained 0.6 percent. New Zealand™s NZX 50 Index slid 0.2 percent. Markets in China and Hong Kong have yet to open.

Hong Kong™s Hang Seng Index jumped 4.2 percent this month, with Tencent Holdings Ltd. surging 20 percent amid optimism Asia™s second-largest Internet company will diversify its revenue sources. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.9 percent, as regulators curb margin lending at brokerages, after gains of 21 percent and 11 percent the previous two months.

Source: Bloomberg

Japanese Stocks Head for Weekly Gain as Yen Weakens on U.S. Data

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Japanese stocks rose, with the Topix index heading for a second weekly gain, after the yen weakened as U.S. jobs data and earnings boosted confidence in the outlook for the world™s biggest economy.

The Topix added 0.9 percent to 1,426.05 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo, headed for gains of 1.6 percent this week and 1.3 percent in January. All of its 33 industry groups advanced. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 1 percent to 17,778.26. The yen traded at 117.24 per dollar after falling 0.6 percent yesterday.

Futures on the Standard & Poor™s 500 Index were little changed. The underlying gauge added 1 percent yesterday as investors scrutinized earnings for clues to the strength of the U.S. economy. Dow Chemical Co. added 4.6 percent and Harman International Industries Inc. surged 24 percent as profits topped estimates.

Applications for unemployment insurance benefits in the U.S. plunged by 43,000 to 265,000 in the week ended Jan. 24, the fewest since April 2000, according to the Labor Department. The Bloomberg index of consumer comfort climbed in the seven-day period ended Jan. 25 to the highest level since July 2007.

A government report today showed Japan™s core consumer prices rose 2.5 percent in December from a year earlier, less than the median projection of 2.6 percent in a Bloomberg News survey of economists. Another report showed industrial production increased 1 percent in December from November, below economists™ estimates for 1.2 percent.

Source: Bloomberg

Japan Inflation Slows More Than Forecast in Challenge to Kuroda

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Japan™s inflation rate slowed more than forecast in December, adding to central bank chief Haruhiko Kuroda™s challenges in reflating the world™s third-biggest economy.

Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.5 percent from a year earlier, the statistics bureau said Friday in Tokyo. That was less than the median projection of 2.6 percent in a Bloomberg News survey of economists. Stripped of the effect of sales-tax increase last April, core inflation -- the Bank of Japan™s key measure -- was 0.5 percent.

The slide in oil could cause inflation to slow in coming months before helping boost growth and stoking price pressures in the longer term, Kuroda said last week after the Bank of Japan lowered its forecast for the year from April. The BOJ will adjust its monetary stimulus to keep inflation headed toward its 2 percent goal if expectations for price gains among companies and consumers deteriorate, Kuroda said.

Source : Bloomberg