The euro hit a one month high against the dollar and sterling late yesterday, supported by a string of weak US data over the course of this week, as well as hawkish comments from the ECB. Markets are nervous that this afternoon’s US non-farm payrolls report for May will be weak, further confirmation that the economic recovery is struggling to hold momentum. Markets had been expecting a rise of around 190,000 but this has now been revised downwards to 150,000 in light of Wednesday’s much weaker than anticipated ADP employment …

The manufacturing activity grew at its slowest pace in 20 months in May, and weaker export and consumer demand led to the first drop in new orders in two years, fuelling fears about the pace of the recovery.
The CIPS manufacturing PMI headline index, published on Wednesday, fell to 52.1 last month from a downwardly revised 54.4 in April, well below the 54.1 consensus forecast. The worst headline reading since September 2009 was blamed on a weaker domestic market, particularly for consumer goods, and the slowest growth in export orders in …

Optimism that Greece will receive a new aid package and be able to avoid a debt restructuring has seen further euro gains, though media reports that the IMF will not make its next payment saw the euro under some pressure at the open today. Yesterday’s release of the flash May HICP also provided some euro support. While the annual inflation rate edged lower it remains well above the ECB’s target level reinforcing expectations for an interest rate hike, most likely in July. Greece is likely to continue to dominate euro …

The dollar fell sharply versus a host of currencies late yesterday and overnight, pressured by a drop in US 10 year bond yields to six month lows on the back of a string of disappointing US data. A wave of stop-loss selling, as well as reports of selling by Asian sovereigns, exaggerated the moves in the USD. The drop in the dollar has pushed the euro back above the $1.42 level, with the single currency getting a respite from worries over the possibility of debt restructuring in Greece. The dollar …

There was a bounce in the euro yesterday and overnight on talk of the possibility of China stepping up its European bond purchases, as well as easing risk aversion on the back of a rise in Asian share prices. The talk on China was fuelled by newspaper story from a professor at the People’s Bank of China that the country should expand its purchases of euro zone sovereign debt and should increase direct investment into Europe. Meanwhile, speculation of a rate hike by the ECB was reignited by remarks by …

Gold Futures and other metals gained on Wednesday’s trading session as the US dollar rebounded after reaching its highs making base metals attractive for investors. Silver futures contract also jumped 3 percent in today’s rally.
Gold futures contract for June delivery gained 0.40 percent or $5.50 to $1,528.80 per ounce in Comex trading session of New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract reached its low of $1,521.30 per ounce when the greenback surged.
The investors were uncertain about the Greece’s debt situation, moreover lower durable good order also created more uncertainty.
Analysts from VTB …