Dollar Gains Amid Higher Yields as Traders Look Past Fed Views

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The dollar’s fighting its way back after the Federal Reserve sent it reeling last week with cuts to its projections for interest rates, inflation and growth.

The greenback gained the most in a week as Treasury yields rose from six-week lows after jobless claims dropped to the lowest level since mid-February. The yen advanced to the strongest level in more than a month as Saudi Arabia and its allies bombed targets in Yemen, increasing demand for haven assets. The Canadian dollar led gains as the price of crude oil rose on concern supplies could be interrupted.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the U.S. currency against 10 major peers, appreciated 0.3 percent to 1,189.11 as of 4:18 p.m. New York time after sliding as much as 0.6 percent.

The yen gained 0.3 percent to 119.17 per dollar and reached 118.33, the strongest level since Feb. 20. The Canadian dollar gained 0.4 percent to C$1.2473 versus the greenback.

Benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yields added seven basis points, or 0.07 percentage point, to 1.99 percent, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader data. They touched 1.85 percent Wednesday, the lowest level since Feb. 6.

Source : Bloomberg

Gold Pares Gains After Yemen Air Strikes Rattle Markets

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Gold pared gains after hitting a 3-1/2-week high on Thursday, after a knee-jerk reaction to escalating tensions in the Middle East knocked stocks and drove investors into assets viewed as lower-risk, such as bullion and German bonds.

Silver rose nearly 3 percent to the highest level in more than five weeks before coming off its highs.

Stock markets worldwide were knocked lower and oil prices jumped after Saudi Arabia and its allies conducted air strikes in Yemen that fueled worries Middle East energy shipments may be put at risk. Wall Street later recovered.

The dollar was down earlier against the euro but recovered in New York trading on the view central bank policy was more favorable for the U.S. currency.

Spot gold reached a peak of $1,219.40 an ounce, before retreating to trade up 0.6 percent at $1,195.25 at 2:47 p.m. EDT (1847 GMT). U.S. gold for April delivery settled up $7.80 an ounce at $1,204.80.

Gold was heading for a seventh session of gains, its longest winning streak since August 2012.

Source : Reuters

S&P 500 Erases Gain in 2015; Treasuries Fall as Gold, Crude Rise

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U.S. stocks fell for a fourth day in the longest slide since January, as declines in transportation shares overshadowed a rebound in technology companies. Treasuries tumbled amid weak auction demand, while oil advanced as Saudi Arabia bombed targets in Yemen.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 slipped 0.2 percent at 4 p.m. in New York, erasing advances in 2015. The gauge fluctuated between gains and losses throughout the session after earlier losing as much as 0.8 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 0.9 percent. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes added eight basis points to 2 percent. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index strengthened 0.3 percent. U.S. crude climbed for a fifth day, and gold added 0.7 percent to pace gains among metals.

The S&P 500 has tumbled 2.5 percent this week, leaving it 0.1 percent for the year, as poor data from manufacturing to housing raised concern that growth may be slowing at the same time analysts forecast the first contraction in quarterly profit since 2009. Yemen has emerged as the latest ground for a proxy fight between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter.

Source : Bloomberg

European Shares Tumble for a Second Day Amid Middle East Tension

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European shares posted their biggest two-day slump in almost three months amid increased tension in the Middle East.

The Stoxx 600 slid 0.9 percent to 394.54 at the close of trading, as Saudi Arabia and its allies bombed rebels in Yemen. Shares pared losses of as much as 1.8 percent in the final hour of trading. The measure is on course for its largest weekly fall this year after climbing within 0.4 percent of a record. A gauge of energy producers reversed earlier gains as concerns over increased instability in the Middle East outweighed higher oil prices. A measure of auto stocks posted the only advance.

The Stoxx 600 rallied 18 percent this year through the end of last week on optimism that stimulus from the European Central Bank will revive the region’s economy. The attack on Shiite rebels in Yemen marks an escalation in tensions with Iran, which the world’s largest oil exporter blames for fomenting trouble in its southern neighbor. Oil climbed 3.1 percent, paring earlier gains of as much as 6.6 percent.

Airlines declined amid higher oil prices. International Consolidated Airlines Group SA slipped 3.4 percent, Deutsche Lufthansa AG retreated 2.9 percent and Air France-KLM Group lost 1.3 percent.

U.S. Stocks Little Changed as Tech Rebound Offsets Airline Slump

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U.S. stocks were little changed after erasing an early decline as a rebound in technology shares offset a drop in transportation companies amid crude oil’s five-day rally.

Technology shares rose 0.4 percent, even as SanDisk Corp. plunged 17 percent amid a lower first-quarter revenue projection. International Business Machines Corp., Apple Inc. and Intel Corp. added more than 1 percent. American Airlines Group Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. lost at least 1.1 percent as oil climbed 3.2 percent to a two-week high.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell less than 0.1 percent to 2,060.88 at 12:07 p.m. in New York, after falling as much as 0.8 percent earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 8.01 points to 17,710.53. The Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.2 percent, after its biggest drop in 11 months yesterday.

Source : Bloomberg