Gold Falls Near Two-Week Low as Fund Holdings Drop a Second Day

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Gold fell to near the lowest in more than two weeks as investors sold metal from exchange-traded products for a second day.

The metal slid as much as 0.4 percent after sinking for a third day Friday when data showed the U.S. jobless rate fell to 5.1 percent in August, the lowest since April 2008, adding to the case for the U.S. Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. The Fed will decide whether to raise rates next week.

Gold is down almost 12 percent in the past year on expectations of higher borrowing costs curbing the appeal of the metal as it doesn’t pay interest or offer returns like other assets such as bonds. Monday is a U.S. holiday.

Bullion for immediate delivery was down 0.2 percent at $1,119.35 an ounce by 3:15 p.m. in New York, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. It fell to $1,116.93 on Friday, the lowest since Aug. 19, posting a second weekly drop.

While employers added a less-than-forecast 173,000 workers in August, the increase followed advances in July and June that were stronger than previously reported. Economists say the August payrolls figures have tended to disappoint compared with consensus projections, but they are typically revised higher in ensuing months. Traders estimate the probability of a September rate increase at 34 percent from 54 percent a month ago.

Gold futures for December delivery lost 0.3 percent to $1,118.30 an ounce on the Comex in New York.

Investors sold metal from exchange-traded products, with holdings falling 0.7 metric ton to 1,521.7 tons, data compiled by Bloomberg as of Friday showed.

Silver for immediate delivery fell 0.5 percent to $14.5077 an ounce. Platinum declined 0.2 percent to $988.65 an ounce, while palladium advanced 0.9 percent to $580.15 an ounce.

Source: Bloomberg

Oil Falls for Second Day on Glut as Chinese Stock Market Drops

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Oil declined for a second day on speculation that OPEC will fail to stabilize prices amid a global oversupply and concern that Chinese demand growth will weaken.

Futures lost as much as 2 percent in New York as the Shanghai Composite Index declined. Russia cannot become a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and may take on “observer status,” OAO Rosneft Chief Executive Officer Igor Sechin said at a conference in Singapore. Prices below $50 a barrel don’t sustain investment, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro told state-owned broadcaster Telesur, proposing a summit to address the slump.

Oil has fluctuated the past three weeks as concerns over slowing demand in China fueled volatility in global markets. Prices are down more than 25 percent from this year’s closing peak in June on signs the surplus will persist. OPEC members are sustaining output and U.S. crude stockpiles remain almost 100 million barrels above the five-year seasonal average.

West Texas Intermediate for October delivery dropped as much as 90 cents to $45.15 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $45.43 at 1:06 p.m. London time. The contract slid 70 cents to $46.05 on Friday. The volume of all futures traded was about 13 percent below the 100-day average. Prices have decreased 15 percent this year.

Source : Bloomberg

China Stock-Index Futures Decline Before Release of Trade Data

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China’s stock-index futures slumped before the release of trade data for August that will probably add to signs of a slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy.

Contracts on the CSI 300 Indexdropped 1.1 percent at 9:18 a.m. local time before the trade data due at about 10 a.m. China’s overseas shipments probably fell 6.6 percent from a year earlier, compared with a drop of 8.3 percent in July, according to a survey of 30 economists and analysts.

The Shanghai Composite Index sank 2.5 percent to 3,080.42 on Monday, led by as large-company shares, amid speculation state-backed funds halted intervention. The Hang Seng Index slumped 1.2 percent in Hong Kong, and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index dropped 0.7 percent to a two-year low. The value of shares traded on the Shanghai Composite was 27 percent below the 30-day average, while a gauge of 100-day volatility was near its highest level since 1997.

In a move to tame price swings that wiped out about $5 trillion of market value, China is considering a circuit breaker tied to shares of the nation’s biggest companies. Trading of stocks, stock options and index futures would be halted for 30 minutes when the CSI 300 Index rises or falls 5 percent, according to a statement Monday from the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges along with the China Financial Futures Exchange. Feedback on the plan is being accepted until Sept. 21, it said.

Industrial and energy companies may move after Wall Street Journal reported, citing a government document, that China approved a five-year reform plan to merge state-owned enterprises and push them to sell shares to the public.

Margin traders increased holdings of shares purchased with borrowed money for the first time since Aug. 14 on Monday, with the outstanding balance of margin debt on the Shanghai Stock Exchange rising 1.6 percent to 615.9 billion yuan ($97 billion).

Source : Bloomberg

Asian Stocks Rise Before China Trade Data as Japan Shares Climb

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Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark index climbing from its lowest close since 2012, as Japanese shares advanced and investors awaited trade data from China.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.1 percent to 124.25 as of 9:07 a.m. in Tokyo. Japan’s Topix index gained 0.3 percent after a revised report showed gross domestic product shrank less than previously reported. While the Shanghai Composite Index lost 2.5 percent on Monday, traders took solace that the slump wasn’t deeper, driving European shares higher. Data Tuesday are expected to show further declines in Chinese exports and imports, potentially reinforcing concern over decelerating growth there and its impact on the global economy.

South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.4 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index added 0.3 percent, as did New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index. Markets in China and Hong Kong have yet to start trading.

Uncertainty over China’s outlook has stoked market volatility the past month, with the country’s surprise devaluation of the yuan Aug. 11 igniting a selloff in the riskiest investments. China’s foreign-exchange reserves fell by a record last month as the central bank sold dollars to support the yuan after the biggest devaluation in two decades spurred bets on continued weakness.

E-mini futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.9 percent from Friday’s close. U.S. markets reopen Tuesday after the Labor Day break.

Futures traders are pricing in a 30 percent likelihood of an increase in U.S. interest rates this month, with the Federal Reserve set to announce its next policy decision on Sept. 17.

Source: Bloomberg

Japan Stocks Rise as Data Shows GDP Contraction Revised Lower

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Japanese stocks rose for a second day after a report showed the country’s economy shrank less than previously reported. Non-ferrous metals producers led gains, while brokerages dropped.

The Topix index climbed 0.3 percent to 1,449.37 as of 9:02 a.m. in Tokyo, with four stocks rising for every three that fell. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 0.5 percent to 17,944.11. The yen fell 0.2 percent to 119.47 per dollar as a report showed Japan’s second-quarter gross domestic product shrank an annualized 1.2 percent compared with a previous estimate of a 1.6 percent contraction.

Economists had forecast the GDP revision to show a 1.8 percent contraction. A separate report showed the nation’s July current account surplus was 1.81 trillion yen, wider than economist estimates of 1.73 trillion yen.

Turnover was light, with volume on the Topix 10 percent below the 30-day intraday average as investors awaited the release of August data on the China’s trade. Economists estimate exports from the world’s second-biggest economy shrank 6.6 percent from a year earlier, while imports contracted by 7.9 percent.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.9 percent from Friday’s close. U.S. markets were closed Monday for Labor Day.

Source : Bloomberg