Cocina oriental

Laura Valencia Hoyos
Cód.:200810343
-------------------------------------------------
MDYD- Noticia: Futures

MARCH 18, 2011, 8:17 A.M. ET
GLOBAL MARKETS: European Stocks Up; Focus On Yen, China Move
Fuente: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110318-705656.html
LONDON (Dow Jones)--European stocks were up Friday, although slightly off earlier highs, as investors welcomed the Group ofSeven industrialized nations' agreement to intervene in the currency markets to stem the yen's rise and support the Japanese economy.
"The market has been cheered by the news that there is a coordinated effort to stem volatility and stocks and 'risky' currencies are rallying," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at Forex.com.
However, there was a small jolt to the markets after the People'sBank of China raised its bank reserve requirement ratio by 50 basis points. As a result, mining stocks pared their gains on concerns about the demand for resources from the world's second-largest economy.
"The authorities in Beijing remain committed to reining in inflation pressures to stop the economy from overheating. But the timing of the move was strange. The aim of intervention by the G-7was to weaken the yen but also to depress currency volatility. So far, China's policy announcement hasn't had an impact on FX markets and intervention remains the key focus, although stocks took a hit and moved lower," Brooks said.
Bjarke Roed-Frederiksen, analyst at Nordea Markets, said he expects three more 25 basis point rate rises during this spring and summer.
Meanwhile, the Japanese yenweakened, the euro gained ground against the dollar, and oil and gold prices were up.
By 1210 GMT, the Stoxx Europe 600 index was up 0.3% at 267.83. London's FTSE 100 index was 0.5% higher at 5726.25, Frankfurt's DAX rose 0.5% to 6693.09, and Paris's CAC-40 was 0.9% higher at 3818.44.
The June Dow Jones Industrial Average futures contract was up 0.8% at 11,791 and the June S&P 500 futurescontract was up 0.8% at 1279.00. Amplify Trading warned the U.S. session could be volatile due to 'quadruple witching', with increased volumes as a result. Quadruple witching is when contracts for stock index futures, stock index options, single stock options and single stock futures all expire. Amplify's analyst Andrea Lazzari also warned the unrest in Libya could add to further uncertainty inthe market.
Indeed, in Europe, traders cautioned that the situation in Libya remained a concern, providing the potential for another bout of risk aversion, after the United Nations Security Council approved a no-fly zone over the country and authorized military force against Moammar Gadhafi's security forces, opening the way for air strikes within days.
In Asia Friday, a surge in Japan's sharesled markets higher Friday, as the G-7 agreed on coordinated intervention to staunch the yen's recent surge, providing some relief as the nation grapples with last week's crippling earthquake and an ongoing nuclear crisis.
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average closed up 2.7%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.6% and South Korea's Kospi Composite was up 1.1%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.1% andChina's Shanghai Composite tacked on 0.3%.
In the European foreign exchanges, the euro rose sharply against the dollar. By 1215 GMT, it was trading at $1.4133, up from $1.4021 late Thursday in New York, while sterling traded at $1.6156, up from $1.6137. Elsewhere, the dollar was at Y81.47, up from Y78.89.
In economic news, the euro-zone trade balance deteriorated in January and was much worsethan expected by consensus estimates. However, given the yen intervention and events in Libya, the data were largely sidelined.
Among commodities, spot gold was at $1419.60 per troy ounce, up $15.10 from New York, while April Nymex crude oil futures were up $1.69 at $103.11 per barrel.
In the bond markets the June bund futures contract was up 0.14 at 122.97 while June gilts were up 0.42 at...