Gold Holds Decline as Investors Look for Further Clues on Rates

Gold held its drop and headed for a fifth straight quarterly loss on prospects for a rise in U.S. interest rates this year as Federal Reserve policy makers honed their message on the outlook for borrowing costs. Bullion for immediate delivery traded at $1,146.80 an ounce at 8:50 a.m. in Singapore from $1,146.20 on Friday, when it closed 0.7 percent lower, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. Gold lost 5.7 percent over the past year...

Dollar Holds Gain as Focus Returns to Signs of Economic Growth

The dollar held gains from its best week since July as investors look for further signs that the U.S. economy is strong enough for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by the end of this year. The greenback advanced against all of its 16 major counterparts last week after a report on Friday showed the world’s largest economy expanded more than previously forecast in the second quarter and Fed Chair Janet Yellen said the central...

Asian Stocks Swing Before China Data; Japanese Shares Retreat

Asian stocks fluctuated, with the regional benchmark index on course for its worst quarter in four years, as investors awaited data on Chinese industrial profits. Shares in Japan slid. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index added less than 0.1 percent to 125.08 as of 9:04 a.m. in Tokyo after slipping as much as 0.1 percent. The regional gauge has slumped about 15 percent since the end of June, heading for its worst quarter since 2011, as the Federal...

Japan Stocks Drop as Over 1,000 Topix Members Trade Ex-Dividend

Japan’s stocks fell, after the Topix index capped its sixth weekly decline in seven weeks, as more than half the companies in the measure traded without the right to receive the next dividend. The Topix slipped 0.5 percent to 1,446.97 as of 9:01 a.m. in Tokyo, while the Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 0.4 percent to 17,808.47. More than 1,000 Topix members are trading ex-dividend Monday, equating to a 10.8 point drag on the measure,...

S&P 500 Closes Little Changed Amid Biotech Selloff, Nike Rally

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index closed little changed, with the benchmark declining for a second straight week as biotechnology stocks tumbled toward a bear market, thwarting a rally led by Nike Inc. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell less than 0.1 percent to 1,931.51 at 4 p.m. in New York, after earlier rising as much as 1.1 percent. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 1 percent, erasing a 1.1 percent climb, while the Dow Jones...