WORLDWIDE : BUSINESS HEADLINES
Japan’s Nishimura: Free trade will be important for economic recovery
TOKYO – Japanese Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said on Wednesday this week’s TPP-11 meeting would be a good opportunity to tell the world that promoting free trade will be an important part of the economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis.
Ministers from the 11-member Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) are due to hold a video conference on Thursday, Japan time.
Nishimura said he believed that strengthening supply chains and implementing digitalization would also be important in the recovery.
Full coverage: REUTERS
WORLDWIDE : ECONOMY / FINANCE / STOCK MARKET
As good as gold? Precious metal shines again
LONDON – Gold jumped to a record high on Wednesday, pushing further past the $2,000 mark in the face of a weak dollar, falling U.S. Treasury yields and expectations of more stimulus measures for the pandemic-ravaged global economy.
European stocks opened higher , aided by a batch of positive earnings. U.S. equity futures ESc1 1YMc1 rose too, indicating a firm open for Wall Street, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside of Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.7% to a 6-1/2 month peak.
But it was the relentless rally in gold that held the spotlight as prices hit a fresh record high at around $2,039 per ounce XAU=.
The precious metal, which has soared more than 30% this year, is benefiting from heightened uncertainty around the long-term effects of the global health crisis.
Full coverage: REUTERS
Euro zone retail sales return to pre-pandemic levels
BRUSSELS – The volume of retail sales in the euro zone rebounded in June to levels recorded in February before lockdowns, official estimates showed on Wednesday, completing a recovery that began in May after record drops in March and April.
Sales in the 19-country currency bloc rose by 5.7% in June from May, according to Eurostat, the European Union’s statistics office. Spending on clothing and car fuel drove the gains.
The increase in sales was smaller than the 5.9% forecast by economists polled by Reuters, but that was largely offset by an upward revision of May sales.
Eurostat said on Wednesday the volume of shopping leaped by 20.3% in May for the month, revising its earlier estimate of a 17.8% increase, which was already the steepest increase since euro zone records began in 1999.
Full coverage: REUTERS
Dollar stays weak amid signs of lagging U.S. economy
LONDON, August 5 – The dollar remained weak on Wednesday as a U.S. coronavirus relief package stalled in Congress and U.S. bond yields sank, with investors weighing prospects of further monetary easing to support the economy.
White House negotiators and congressional Democrats are trying to reach a deal on a package by the end of this week, ad Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Tuesday that progress had been made on key components of the bill.
A hardening perception that the U.S. economic recovery is lagging Europe has buttressed the euro, pushing it above $1.19 in the last couple of days.
Early on Wednesday, the common currency traded up 0.1% at $1.1815 EUR=EBS.
Full coverage: REUTERS
Wall St. ends higher as investors eye stimulus
Wall Street ended higher after a choppy session on Tuesday, lifted by Apple and energy stocks but limited by declines in AIG and Microsoft while investors awaited more U.S. government stimulus to fight economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Apple (AAPL.O) climbed 0.7%, up for a fifth straight session as investors cheered the iPhone maker’s blowout quarterly report last week. The Silicon Valley heavyweight is around $120 billion away from becoming the first U.S. publicly listed company with a stock market value of $2 trillion.
The S&P 500 energy index .SPNY jumped 2.45% and was the strongest performer among 11 sectors, while healthcare declined .SPXHC.
Ralph Lauren Corp (RL.N) dropped 4.4% to its lowest since May after quarterly revenue plunged due to coronavirus-related store closures and a slowdown in global demand for luxury goods.
Full coverage: REUTERS
