Gold Drops for First Time in Four Days Amid Global Equity Rout

---

Gold fell for the first time in four days as Asian stocks extended a global rout on concern over China’s slowdown and its impact on the world economy.

Bullion for immediate delivery declined 0.3 percent to $1,136.84 an ounce at 8:31 a.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal climbed 1.4 percent in the previous three days and jumped 3.6 percent in August, the biggest monthly gain since January.

Data showing Chinese manufacturing at a three-year low reignited a global share slump on Tuesday and the selloff continued in Asia. The Federal Reserve is scrutinizing data to determine the timing and pace of its first boost to borrowing costs since 2006. Attention will focus on the government jobs report Friday as the last major data point before the Fed meets Sept. 16-17.

Gold futures for December lost 0.3 percent to $1,136.10 on the Comex in New York. Silver for immediate delivery fell 0.3 percent to $14.5775 an ounce. Platinum was little changed at $1,002.14 an ounce, while palladium rose 0.2 percent to $573.35 an ounce after a 4.7 percent slump on Tuesday.

Source: Bloomberg

Aussie Sinks to 6-Year Low as China Threatens Growth Outlook

---

The Australian dollar hit a six-year low before a report forecast to show slowing domestic economic growth amid signs of a slump in China.

The currency fell as low as 70.13 U.S. cents and looks poised to break below 70 cents for the first time since April 2009. It has dropped 4 percent over the past month, the biggest loss among Group-of-10 currencies, as stocks slid.

The currency fetched 70.18 U.S. cents as of 8:03 a.m. in Tokyo from 70.19 in New York on Tuesday. It rose 0.2 percent to 83.93 yen.

China’s official Purchasing Managers’ Index dropped to 49.7 for August, the weakest in three years, a report showed Tuesday. Numbers below 50 indicate contraction.

The Australian economy probably expanded 0.4 percent in the three months ended June 30 from the first quarter, when it grew 0.9 percent, a report Wednesday is forecast to show, according to economists in a Bloomberg survey.

Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens and his board kept the cash rate at a record-low 2 percent on Tuesday, as predicted by markets and economists following reductions in May and February.

Source : Bloomberg

Oil Retreats Below $45 as U.S. Stockpiles Seen Exacerbating Glut

---

Oil dropped below $45 a barrel before U.S. government data forecast to show crude stockpiles expanded in the world’s biggest oil consumer.

Futures slid as much as 3.4 percent in New York, extending Tuesday’s 7.7 percent decline. Inventories probably increased by 900,000 barrels last week, according to a Bloomberg survey before data Wednesday from the Energy Information Administration. Supplies rose by 7.6 million barrels through Aug. 28, the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute was said to have reported.

West Texas Intermediate for October delivery declined as much as $1.55 to $43.86 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $44.15 at 9:58 a.m. Sydney time. The contract slid $3.79 to $45.41 on Tuesday. The volume of all futures traded was about 70 percent above the 100-day average. Prices have decreased 17.2 percent this year.

Brent for October settlement decreased as much as $1.08, or 2.2 percent, to $48.48 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange. It dropped $4.59, or 8.5 percent, to $49.56 on Tuesday. The European benchmark crude traded at a premium of $4.30 to WTI.

Source: Bloomberg

Asia Stocks Follow U.S. Shares Lower Amid Global Growth Concern

---

Asian stocks fell, following a decline in U.S. shares, as weak American manufacturing data added to concern about a slowdown in global economic growth.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.7 percent to 125.97 as of 9:02 a.m. in Tokyo. Anemic demand from emerging markets including China translated into leaner factory order books in the U.S., data showed Tuesday.

Futures on the FTSE China A50 Index slid 1.5 percent in most recent trading in Singapore, with contracts on the Hang Seng Index declining 0.7 percent.

Japan’s Topix index declined 1.7 percent. South Korea’s Kospi index retreated 1.5 percent and New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index lost 1.3 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index fell ahead of a report on the nation’s economic growth. Markets are yet to open in Hong Kong and China.

In addition to the U.S. manufacturing report, an official factory gauge in China dropped to a three-year low in August, while measures for the euro area signaled a divergence in the German and French economies. An index for Germany expanded more than forecast and a French measure showed contraction, according to Markit Economics. U.K. manufacturing growth cooled as export orders declined for a fifth month.

Source : Bloomberg

Japan Stocks Fall Third Day as U.S. Data Adds to Global Gloom

---

Japanese stocks fell after the yen rallied and equities plunged in New York as a report showing U.S. manufacturing grew at the slowest pace in two years added to concern about a global economic slowdown.

The Topix slipped 1.8 percent to 1,451.76 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo, falling for a third day as all of its 33 industry groups dropped. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average retreated 1.7 percent to 18,859.51. The yen traded at 119.80 per dollar after strengthening 1.6 percent on Tuesday, the biggest rally in a week. Growth in U.S. factory output is slowing and China’s official manufacturing gauge slumped to the lowest in three years, reports showed.

Investors in Japan have turned the most bearish on equities in almost seven years. Short-selling accounted for 41 percent of trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Tuesday, the highest ratio since the bourse began keeping daily records in 2008.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 0.2 percent after the underlying measure lost 3 percent on Tuesday, its third-biggest loss of 2015.

Source: Bloomberg