Oil Holds Below $60 a Barrel as Pace of U.S. Drilling Cuts Slows

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Oil held below $60 a barrel as U.S. companies reduced the number of active rigs at the slowest pace since a prolonged retreat in drilling began in December.

Futures were little changed in New York after falling 0.3 percent on Friday, capping a three-day drop. The rig count slipped by eight to 660, the smallest cut in 23 weeks of declines, according to Baker Hughes Inc. Demand for OPEC’s crude will rise as current prices hinder shale output expansions, according to Qatar Petroleum International’s Chief Executive Officer.

Oil’s recovery from a six-year low is stalling near $60 a barrel amid speculation rising prices will encourage production and sustain a supply glut. U.S. crude inventories are more than 100 million barrels above the five-year average for this time of year, according to government data.

West Texas Intermediate for June delivery, which expires Tuesday, rose 12 cents to $59.81 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:27 a.m. Sydney time. The contract slid 19 cents to $59.69 on Friday. The volume of all futures traded was about 66 percent below the 100-day average. The more-active July futures were 10 cents higher at $60.64.

Brent for July settlement gained 5 cents to $66.86 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. The European benchmark crude was at a premium of $6.23 to WTI for the same month.

Source: Bloomberg

Dollar Drops to Four-Month Low as Downbeat Outlook Halts Climb

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The mighty dollar isn’t getting any help from U.S. consumers.

The currency erased gains after consumer confidence unexpectedly fell by the most in more than two years, reflecting Americans’ dim economic outlook. The greenback extended a weekly decline after a duo of manufacturing indicators missed expectations, scuppering an earlier rally.

The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which tracks the greenback versus 10 major trading partners, was down 0.1 percent at 1,149.80 at 3:14 p.m. New York time, deepening its decline to 1.2 percent in the past week. The index fell as low as 1,149.06 Friday, the lowest level since Jan. 21.

The greenback is poised to fall for the fifth week as tepid U.S. indicators contrast with those in Europe showing stronger growth and stabilizing inflation. The selloff is the longest since Oct. 4, 2013, during a stalemate between congressional Republicans and Democrats over raising the federal debt ceiling.

The dollar fell 0.4 percent to $1.1455 against the euro. It climbed 0.1 percent to 119.33 yen.

Source: Bloomberg

China’s Stock-Index Futures Decline as Share Sales Lock Up Funds

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China’s stock-index futures fell amid concern new share sales will lure funds from existing equities.

Futures on the CSI 300 Index expiring in June, the most active contract, lost 1.5 percent to 4,550.80 as of 9:26 a.m. local time. Twenty companies are scheduled to sell initial public offering shares from Tuesday to Thursday, which may freeze 2.8 trillion yuan ($451.1 billion) based on the median estimate of a Bloomberg survey.

The Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.6 percent on Friday, while the CSI 300 declined 1.8 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng China Enterprises Index advanced 1.7 percent and the Hang Seng Index gained 2 percent. The Bloomberg China-US Equity Index added 0.6 percent in New York.

The Shanghai Composite has rallied 113 percent over the past year amid speculation the government will extend interest-rate cuts and speed up mergers of state-owned firms. It is valued at 16.6 times 12-month projected earnings, compared with the five-year average multiple of 10.2, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Source: Bloomberg

Asian Stocks Track U.S. Share Gains as Weak Data Spur Fed Bets

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Asian stocks rose for a second day, following gains in U.S. shares as weaker-than-expected economic data spurred bets the Federal Reserve won’t rush to raise interest rates.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.1 percent to 153.37 as of 9:06 a.m. in Tokyo after rising 1.4 percent last week. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index extended a record Friday after data showed an unexpected drop in consumer confidence. Equities rose last week after selling that erased $400 billion from fixed-income markets subsided.

Japan’s Topix index added 0.5 percent. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. plans to buy back more shares and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. is raising its dividend as the nation’s largest lenders increase shareholder returns amid higher profits. Mitsubishi UFJ climbed 1.8 percent and Mizuho rose 1.9 percent.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index declined 0.2 percent. South Korea’s Kospi index was little changed. New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index gained 0.2 percent.

Source: Bloomberg

Japanese Stocks Advance as Investors Weigh Yen, Fed Rate Outlook

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Japanese stocks rose as investors weighed a strengthening yen against a potential delay in any U.S. interest-rate increase.

The Topix index climbed 0.3 percent to 1,612.07 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo, after gaining 1.2 percent last week. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 0.1 percent to 19,748.08. The yen traded at 119.35 per dollar after last week strengthening by the most in a month as weaker-than-expected U.S. economic data, including a consumer confidence report on Friday, pushed the greenback lower.

A government report today showed Japanese machine orders rose 2.6 percent in March from a year earlier, beating estimates by economists for a decline of 6 percent.

E-mini futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slipped 0.1 percent after the underlying U.S. measure gained 0.1 percent to close at a record on Friday in New York.

Source: Bloomberg