Bond futures contracts pushed higher in choppy trading Tuesday. German retail sales, +1.3% in May, weighed on bunds in early trade, but government bonds recovered, bolstered by safe-haven demand as European equity markets fell sharply. June euro zone manufacturing PMI, 49.2 versus forecast 49.1, had little market impact. At 1100 GMT, the September bund contract was up 0.18 at 110.75, within a 110.29-110.78 range. Meanwhile, December euribor was unchanged at 94.75, with March '09 up 0.02 at 94.73. Gilts tracked bunds, while short sterling contracts were buoyed by weak UK data.The June Nationwide house price index fell by 0.9%, for a year-on-year decline of 6.3%, while the June manufacturing PMI plummeted to 45.8 from 49.5 in May. At 1100 GMT, September gilts were up 0.19 at 104.58, in a 104.19-104.59 range, while December short sterling was up 0.07 at 93.82. More woes in the financial sector weighed on equities, favoring the safer low yielders and pressuring the USD. Sterling outperformed, breaking back above the $2 barrier for the first time since mid-April with its yield advantage and short-covering cited. EUR/JPY and EUR/CHF remain offered as European equity bourses racked up declines of 2.8%, EUR/USD added almost 1 cent to 1.5818 while USD/JPY shed the same amount to 105.33. No new highs for oil, trading just under $143bbl
0 comments:
Post a Comment