US STOCKS-Indexes flat after jobs data; ISM to come

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, Aug 3 - U S. stocks were little changed
on Friday after a report showing weaker-than-expected job
growth last month rattled investors already nervous about
losses in the mortgage industry.




Investors were bracing for data on the vast U.S. services
sector at 10 a.m. .


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Asian Banks Face Limited Fallout From U.S. Subprime Crisis, Moody's Says

(Bloomberg) -- The impact of the U.S. subprime
mortgage crisis on Asian banks has been ``limited'' and
``manageable,'' according to global ratings companies Moody's
Investors Service and Standard & Poor's.

``In Asia, Moody's expects the fallout from the U.S.
subprime mortgage market problems to be limited among the
region's internationally active investment and universal banks,''
Moody's said in a statement, citing a preliminary survey.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

South Korean Stocks Advance; Steelmakers Gain on UBS Call, Samsung Climbs

(Bloomberg) -- South Korean stocks climbed for the
first time in three days. Steelmakers gained after Moody's
Investors Service said it put Posco's debt rating on review for
a possible upgrade.

Posco shares yesterday closed 10 percent lower than the
July 24 record of 567,000 won.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

South Korea Stocks Rise, Set for Sixth Month of Gains; Doosan Leads Climb

(Bloomberg) -- South Korean stocks rose, set to
complete a sixth month of gains. Doosan Infracore Co. advanced
after Hyundai Securities Co. said the $4.9 billion acquisition of
an Ingersoll-Rand Co. unit will help the company expand into
developed markets.

``The acquisition will help it make inroads into markets like
the U.S.,'' said Cho Joon Hyuk, who helps manage $1.5 billion at
Nonghyup CA Asset Management in Seoul. ``Investors also like the
deal because the Doosan Group kept saying they were interested in
takeovers and product diversification, and now they're actually
showing us it's true.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Gold, Silver Little Changed After Drop on Concern Global Growth May Slow

(Bloomberg) -- Gold was little changed in Asia after
the biggest weekly decline in almost two months on concern that
global economic growth may slow, reducing the metal's appeal as a
hedge against inflation. Silver was also little changed.

Gold fell 3.3 percent last week amid a $2.1 trillion world
stock market rout and concern that U.S. subprime mortgage losses
may slow economic growth, reducing inflation. Investors usually
buy gold at time of rising raw material prices to preserve wealth.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Hungary's Forint Posts Weekly Drop as Investors Flee Emerging Markets

(Bloomberg) -- The Hungarian forint posted its
biggest weekly drop against the euro in 10 months as tumbling
global stocks and concern about U.S. subprime mortgage losses
prompted investors to shun emerging markets.

The forint was the third worst performer against the euro
over the past five days, sliding more than 2 percent, as the NTX
Index of stocks in central Europe's 30 largest companies declined
the most in a week since March. Investors reversed trades where
they'd bought the forint to take advantage of Hungary's 7.75
percent interest rate, also sending the currency tumbling.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

European Bonds Advance as U.S. Housing Slump Drives Investor Risk Aversion

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds advanced,
pushing 10-year yields to the lowest in almost two months, on
concern a housing slump in the U.S. is worsening.

Benchmark bonds rose for a second day after shares of U.S.
homebuilders sank to their lowest since 2003. A credit market
rout caused by defaults on U.S. subprime mortgages gives
``serious reasons to worry,'' without posing a systemic threat,
Moody's Investors Service said in a report.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

GLOBAL MARKETS-US housing woes send stocks down, yen higher

(Reuters) - Investors worry housing troubles will dampen corporate
activity further, retrench consumer spending and hit the world's
largest economy -- which in turn could affect Asia and Europe
which are enjoying robust growth.




Recent deterioration in credit markets from the fallout in
high-risk U.S. subprime mortgages means firms are facing higher
financing costs. This could dry up the stream of M&A deals which
have fuelled world stocks to lifetime peaks only last week.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Asian Currencies Weaken as Risk Aversion Rises; South Korean Won Advances

(Bloomberg) -- Asian currencies fell, led by the
Indonesian rupiah and Philippine peso, on speculation overseas
investors are cutting back riskier assets on concern the U.S.
economy will slow.

A slump in U.S. subprime loans gives ``serious reasons to
worry'' and is a ``reality check,'' without posing a systemic
threat, Moody's Investors Service said today. A weighted basket
of 10 Asian currencies, compiled by JPMorgan, slipped from the
highest since the region's financial crisis in 1997.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

JGB futures hit six-week high as stocks dip

(Reuters) - Activity was subdued as many market players kept to the
sidelines on lingering worries over problems in the subprime
mortgage sector spilling over into the broader economy. On Friday
U.S. benchmark 10-year yields fell to their lowest level since
early June.




Investors also awaited the outcome of the upper house
election on July 29, as well as remarks by BOJ Governor Toshihiko
Fukui, who will speak on short-term money markets at 0730 GMT.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Japan Stocks May Drop on U.S. Earnings, Election Concern; Komatsu May Fall

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese shares may decline, paced by
companies that rely on the U.S. market, after Caterpillar Inc.
said its profit dropped on lower North American sales. Exporters
such as Honda Motor Co. and Komatsu Ltd. may fall.

Investors may also refrain from betting heavily on stocks
before the Upper House election, which will be held on July 29.
The Nikkei newspaper reported yesterday Japan's ruling coalition
may lose its majority in the election, citing its own poll.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Sugar Futures Decline on Speculation Indian Exports to Add to Global Glut

(Bloomberg) -- Sugar fell in New York on speculation
that India, the second-largest producer, may offer to sell
unrefined supplies of the sweetener, adding to a global surplus.

Investors and traders expect India to issue a tender on
July 23 for up to 265,000 metric tons of raw sugar, according to
a report yesterday by BNP Paribas Commodity Futures Inc. in New
York. Until recently, India only exported white, refined sugar. A
record crop in India may lead the country to double total
exports, a minister said last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

New York City's Credit Rating Raised by Moody's on Revenue, Faster Growth

(Bloomberg) -- New York City's credit rating was
raised by Moody's Investors Service as Wall Street bonuses and a
robust real estate market resulted in a record surplus, allowing
the city to set aside funds to pay down debt and cover future
expenses.

Moody's boosted the most-populous U.S. city's rating on $36
billion of general obligation debt one level to Aa3, its fourth-
highest investment grade, from A1. It is the third upgrade for
the city in the last six weeks, and brings New York's rating to
the AA category at all three rating companies for the first
time. Last month, Standard & Poor's raised its ranking on the
city's debt to AA, while Fitch Ratings boosted its grade to AA-.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

ABC-Wash Post Consumer Comfort Index falls to -11

(Reuters) - Earlier on Tuesday, Investor's Business Daily and
TechnoMetrica Market Intelligence said their IBD/TIPP economic
optimism index fell deeper into pessimistic territory to 48.2
in July from 49.1 in June, under pressure from higher energy
and food costs.




Two of the three components of the ABC/Post survey were
down as Americans' positive views on their personal finances
and the buying climate fell 3 percentage points each to 55
percent and 36 percent, respectively.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

RPT-TREASURIES-Bonds sag on Dow over 14,000 and inflation fears

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 17 - U.S. Treasury debt prices
fell on Tuesday after strong company earnings prompted
investors to favor stocks over bonds and lifted the Dow Jones
industrial average above the 14,000 milestone for the first
time.




Investors also sold bonds as inflation worries were
stirred by an unexpectedly large rise in the core U.S.
Producer Price Index for June. Inflation erodes the value of
bonds.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

United Technologies Options Are `Bullish' Before Tomorrow's Profit Report

(Bloomberg) -- Investors are using options to bet
United Technologies Corp. shares will gain after the company
reports second-quarter results tomorrow, according to analysts at
Strategic Option Consulting and Susquehanna Financial Group.

Trading in calls, or options to buy shares of the maker of
Otis elevators and Pratt & Whitney jet engines, surged to 48,831
contracts yesterday. That was the most in two months and an 11-
fold increase from the 20-day average. At the same time, United
Technologies shares advanced 2.2 percent, the most since January,
to a record $76.67.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

FTSE weighed by miners, worries over US economy

(Reuters) - Britain's top share index fell on Tuesday as miners suffered downgrades and investors braced for U.S. inflation data after fresh fears over the subprime mortgage market fuelled concerns about the state of the world's largest economy.

Investors were also unsettled by a UK inflation report that showed price pressures remained strong, stoking fears of higher interest rates.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Argentina stocks close steady after record high

(Reuters) - "We have a very selective cycle ... in which we can see the
market sitting on prices that are already high," said Juan
Pablo de Bary, a trader with De Bary and Company brokerage.




"Investors divided up their preferences and focused on
stocks in the energy sector, which compensated for profit
taking with Tenaris," he added.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

TREASURIES-Bonds edge up as subprime concerns resurface

(Reuters) - Investors waited to see if U.S. equities would extend the
previous session's solid gains or whether the subprime worries
would dominate financial markets sentiment and push U.S.
government bond yields down further in a flight to safety bid.




Futures were signaling a slightly higher start for stocks on
Wall Street, curbing Treasuries gains.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Credit Suisse Cuts South African Stocks Recommendation to `Underweight'

(Bloomberg) -- Investors should reduce holdings of
South African stocks because share prices have risen too high and
mining companies may suffer in an economic slowdown, according to
Credit Suisse Group.

South African shares were cut to an ``underweight''
recommendation, meaning investors should hold fewer of the stocks
than are represented in emerging-market indexes, Alexander Redman
wrote in a strategy note distributed today. The previous stance
was ``market weight.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News