Gold Extends Decline to Near One-Month Low Before Fed Meeting

Gold dropped for a second day to trade near the lowest level in a month as investors awaited this week’s Federal Reserve meeting. Bullion for immediate delivery retreated as much as 0.3 percent to $1,104.82 an ounce and traded at $1,106.10 by 8:31 a.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal fell to $1,098.80 on Friday, the lowest intraday level since Aug. 11. While about half of the economists in a Bloomberg...

Oil Slide Falters Near $45 a Barrel as U.S. Drillers Idle Rigs

Oil’s decline below $45 a barrel faltered as U.S. drillers idled rigs for a second week amid a global glut. Futures increased as much as 0.8 percent in New York, paring Friday’s 2.8 percent drop. The number of rigs seeking oil slid to the lowest level in almost two months, according to Baker Hughes Inc. China’s crude processing rose last month as gasoline demand encouraged higher refinery output, data from the National Bureau of Statistics...

China Fixed-Asset Investment Tumbles to Lowest Since 2000

China’s fixed-asset investment rose at the slowest pace in 15 years and industrial production trailed analyst estimates, raising further question marks over the effectiveness of government efforts to revive growth. Investment excluding rural households climbed 10.9 percent in the first eight months, the National Statistics Bureau said Sunday, versus 11.2 percent median projection of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Industrial output...

Japan Stocks Swing as Investors Await Fed Decision on U.S. Rates

Japanese stocks fluctuated as investors awaited this week’s decision on U.S. interest rates after data showed China’s fixed asset investment grew at its slowest pace in 15 years. Utilities advanced while phone companies tumbled. Mobile carriers NTT Docomo Inc., KDDI Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp. sank at least 4.6 percent after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said reducing the burden on households from mobile phone fees is an important issue...

Asian Stocks Advance as Investors Weigh China Data, Await Fed

Asian stocks rose, after posting their first weekly advance since July, as investors awaited this week’s Federal Reserve policy decision and weighed mixed economic reports from China. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added 0.3 percent to 127.69 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo. China’s fixed-asset investment rose at the slowest pace in 15 years and industrial production trailed analyst estimates, while August retail sales topped projections, reports...