Forex Trading News
Dollar, Euro, Pound & Yen

00:00 Tuesday 27 July, 2010

There is a risk of the UK's economic recovery being derailed because of the government's austerity measures, Alistair Darling, former UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, told CNBC Monday. Darling also discussed the EU's bank stress tests.

23:56 Monday 26 July, 2010

U.S. stocks rose, erasing the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 2010 loss, oil advanced and Treasuries fell after American new home sales climbed more than estimated and FedEx Corp. boosted its profit forecast.

The Dow average climbed 51.24 points, or 0.5 percent, to 10,475.86 at 10:08 a.m. New York time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 0.6 percent, led by transportation companies such as FedEx and United Parcel Service Inc. Crude oil futures rallied 0.2 percent to $79.14 a barrel. Yields on 10-year Treasuries gained one basis point to 3 percent.

Sales of U.S. new homes rose in June more than forecast following an unprecedented collapse the prior month, a signal the worst of the slump triggered by the end of a government tax credit is over. FedEx joined UPS, the world’s largest package delivery company, in lifting its earnings forecasts. More than 83 percent of S&P 500 companies have exceeded the average analyst profit estimate since July 12.

23:52 Monday 26 July, 2010

Sales of U.S. new homes rose in June more than forecast following an unprecedented collapse the prior month, a signal the worst of the slump triggered by the end of a government tax credit is over.

Purchases increased 24 percent from May to an annual pace of 330,000, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. The rate was the second-lowest in data going back to 1963 after May’s downwardly revised 267,000 pace.

The lowest mortgage rates on record may help underpin demand, stabilizing the industry that triggered the worst recession since the 1930s. Even so, increasing foreclosures are swelling the number of unsold existing homes, putting pressure on prices and keeping buyers on the sidelines as unemployment hovers near 10 percent and the economy cools.

19:58 Monday 26 July, 2010

Large cap stocks in the China market are cheap and will outperform, believes Erwin Sanft, head of China and HK research at BNP Paribas Securities. He tells CNBC's Oriel Morrison that investors should not ignore this opportunity.

19:54 Monday 26 July, 2010

The stress test in which only seven of 91 European Union banks failed is just a public relations exercise and wasn't tough enough, famous investor Jim Rogers told CNBC.com Monday.

On Friday, EU authorities released the results for the stress tests, with many analysts saying the criteria had been harsher than the ones used to test US banks a year ago. But Rogers said the European test was "a PR exercise just as was America's."

They were "a waste of time – and journalistic ink," he wrote in an e-mail.

19:48 Monday 26 July, 2010

U.S. index futures fell and European stocks fluctuated as concern the economic outlook is deteriorating outweighed relief over bank stress tests. The yen strengthened, Treasuries rose and oil declined.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slid 0.1 percent at 11:04 a.m. in London. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped 0.1 percent, the first drop in five days. The yen appreciated against all but two of its 16 most-traded counterparts. The yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury note lost almost two basis points to 2.98 percent.

Global growth may average 3.25 percent to 3.5 percent in the next three to five years, less than the 4.7 percent pace of the five years leading up to the 2008 slump, according to Stephen Roach, non-executive chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia. European Union and International Monetary Fund officials are due to begin checks on Greece’s progress toward meeting requirements for a bailout program. Regulators found last week that most European banks past stress tests.

16:21 Monday 26 July, 2010

The stress tests were a "decently positive" step, says Simon Warner, head of Macro Markets at AMP Capital, as he believes investors now have more information to make a better assessment on European banks. He shares his thoughts with Marco Bardelli, MD of BDG Singapore, CNBC's Martin Soong & Karen Tso.

16:17 Monday 26 July, 2010

The second quarter is getting no respect. Only a few weeks ago, the quarter was strutting along the beach. Now even economists are kicking sand in its face.

The main focus on the data in the coming week will be the first estimate of growth in the April-June quarter.

Economists said the second quarter real growth probably came in at an annual rate of just 2.5%, down from the 2.7% rate in the first quarter.

16:12 Monday 26 July, 2010

The new normal for the world economy may be arriving as the U.S., Europe and China all decelerate simultaneously.

After policy stimulus and inventory-rebuilding pulled the major economies out of recession with 5 percent growth in the first quarter, they are slouching toward a weaker expansion, even as they show signs of dodging a double-dip. Global growth may average 3.25 percent to 3.5 percent in the next three to five years, well below the 4.7 percent pace of the five years leading up to the 2008 slump, estimates Stephen Roach, non- executive chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia.

Behind the deceleration in the long-run noninflationary growth rate: consumer retrenchment in the U.S. and fiscal consolidation in Europe, as well as weaker bank lending and employment in both. Chinese growth also may ebb as the world’s most populous country reorients its economy away from manufacturing and exports.

12:27 Monday 26 July, 2010

Earnings at Japan's three largest banking groups are finally back to pre-crisis levels, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. , Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. (8316.TO) and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. (8411.TO) all likely to report net profits of over Y100 billion for the April-June period, the Nikkei reported over the weekend.

Their earnings have been weak since mid-2007, due to losses from cleaning up bad loans, among other reasons. For the April-June quarter of 2009, earnings at the megabanks ranged from a net loss in the billions of yen to a net profit of about Y70 billion.

Reasons for the improvement include larger earnings from trading operations and smaller losses on bad loans thanks to fewer major bankruptcies.

12:22 Monday 26 July, 2010

Asian stock markets were slightly higher Monday, lifted by Wall Street's gains on relief over the European bank stress tests. Australian shares tapped a fresh four-week high buoyed by strong fourth quarter sales from Wesfarmers.

The rise in U.S. stock markets Friday, coming in the wake of European bank stress test results which some analysts considered inadequate, lifted sentiment in the region.

"There is talk that the tests were too lax, but for now, there is relief that they did not cause any volatility in the currency markets," said Yumi Nishimura, deputy general manager at Daiwa Securities Capital Markets in Tokyo.

09:47 Monday 26 July, 2010

The yen fell against all of its 16 major counterparts amid optimism the Asian economic recovery remains intact, damping demand for Japan’s currency as a refuge.

The yen dropped for a third day against the euro after reports showed Japan’s exports rose more than forecast and South Korea’s economy grew faster than expected. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index of regional shares rose 0.6 percent, advancing for a second day.

“Asia-Pacific economies are growing steadily, so their central banks are likely to hike rates further,” said Tsutomu Soma, a bond and currency dealer at Okasan Securities Co. in Tokyo. “There’s risk-taking sentiment, which is a factor for selling the yen and the dollar.”

09:44 Monday 26 July, 2010

Japan’s exports rose faster than economists estimated, sustaining a boost to the economic recovery that may diminish as the yen strengthens.

Shipments abroad advanced 27.7 percent in June from a year earlier, the Finance Ministry said today in Tokyo. The median estimate of 19 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for 23.5 percent. From a month earlier, exports fell 1.8 percent.

Japan’s currency climbed to a seven-month high against the dollar this month, prompting officials including Trade Minister Masayuki Naoshima to warn that its appreciation may hurt the recovery. The higher local currency threatens to erode the value of earnings of exporters such as Toyota Motor Corp.

08:07 Monday 26 July, 2010

A look at the week's top business news stories, which stocks the pros are recommending and what you should watch for next week, with CNBC's Courtney Reagan.

08:01 Monday 26 July, 2010

Exxon, Chevron, Boeing and Sprint lead a long list of earnings reports. An equally long list of economic data, including GDP, consumer sentiment, unemployment and new-home sales awaits investors. MarketWatch's Rex Crum reports.

07:32 Monday 26 July, 2010

The U.S. economy expanded at a slower pace in the second quarter as consumer spending cooled and the trade deficit swelled, economists project a report this week will show.

Gross domestic product rose at a 2.5 percent annual pace after increasing at a 2.7 percent rate in the first three months of the year, according to the median estimate of 68 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News before a July 30 Commerce Department report. Other data may show gains in business investment are taking up some of the slack, while housing is mired in a slump.

Less growth heading into the second half of the year means employers will hesitate to take on staff and will keep a lid on prices to spur sales. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke last week said the central bank is prepared to take further policy actions if the world’s largest economy “doesn’t continue to improve.”

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