Currency: Euro pressured by new disappointing figures

With another disappointing European figure in luggage investors Friday sends the euro down in value against both the dollar and the yen. Meanwhile the Swedish krona loses terrain after unexpectedly weak figures from the industry.

Stocks: Fiscal cliff also draws Europe down

The mood could be better on the stock exchanges in Europe in Friday's trading, where investors have pushed  optimism to the side. Instead, the focus is on the major challenges that policymakers are struggling with on both sides of the Atlantic.

In Europe the debt crisis continue to pull down, while Americans' concerns is whether Democrats and Republicans can agree in due time before the fiscal tightening with the entrance to 2013.

Bonds: Calm winds on interest-front

There was relatively quiet on the bond markets in Europe Tuesday, where a lack of news and remain closed trading in the U.S. meant very little fluctuation in interest rates.

Spain's economic growth lagged not quite as much as economists feared in the third quarter. Growth in gross domestic product, GDP, was Tuesday morning amounted to minus 1.6 percent in the third quarter compared with the same period last year. Economists had expected a decline of 1.7 percent, which was in line with data earlier this month from the Bank of Spain.

Stocks: Sprint secured pluses in New York

It went up and down on the U.S. stock market on Friday. Investors are keeping a close eye on the economic data that alternately disappoints and shows good performance.

Dow Jones index ended the day with a minimal increase of 0.03 percent to index 13,107. S&P 500 ended the day with a small loss of 0.07 percent to Index 1411, while the Nasdaq rose by 0.06 percent to index 2987.

Bonds: Spanish messages turned the picture

Bond dealers were almost gone for the weekend before Friday's trade. In any case, there were close to absolute rest on a trading day, which was marked by cautious buying almost across the board.

This resulted in a slight decline in interest rates in both South and North Europe most of the day, but new reports that Spain has not intend to seek official help for its pressed banking sector reversed the picture in Spain and Italy, which ended with small increases in interest rates.

Europe: Kept momentum in Spanish redemption

The European market Wednesday insisted its upward momentum after a long-awaited report from Moody's on Spain did not contain the expected downgrade of its credit rating. At the same time a string of positive news for several large European companies sent mood firmly upwards.

Beige Book: Modest growth in the U.S. economy

With improved figures for the housing market and car sales and not least the labor market it is a U.S. economy that is showing 'modest growth'.

That is according to the trend report Beige Book, published Wednesday evening. It presents 12 districts - regional branches of the Federal Reserve - their assessment of how the economy in their field are doing, collected by the central bank, Fed.

Europe: Fall dominated

European stocks closed in red on Tuesday. Measured on the Stoxx 600-index, there was a decrease of 0.5 percent to 270.20. 441 of the index 600 shares fell. The three largest stock markets in Europe closed lower. In Britain, there was a decrease of 0.5 percent and in Germany of 0.8 percent, while shares in France fell by 0.7 percent.

Euro rescue fund with 500 billion euro is ready

Two years after the euro countries started to design a new, permanent rescue fund for their ailing economies, the fund - called ESM – is now a reality.

Economy and finance ministers from the 17 euro countries are Monday meeting in Luxembourg to founding the board of the fund, which should eventually be able to support problem countries with up to 500 billion euro.

Bonds: Interest rate increase after job report

Bond yields in Northern Europe was Friday sent up by surprisingly good U.S. job figures, which were as expected in September but contained upward revisions of the previous two months' figures. It sent investors to back the tables to turn up the knob that controls the "risk-on". This gave rise in stock markets, rising interest rates in the safe countries and declining yields in riskier countries from southern Europe.

Currency: Euro strengthened on ECB comments

The European Central Bank on Thursday kept the benchmark interest rate on the main refinancing operations at 0.75 percent. This was not a surprise from the ECB as the only few individual analysts and economists had expected a reduction in European interest rates.

Bonds: Interest rates fall in the north and increases in south

Wednesday was a very quiet day in the bond markets in Europe, where the result of investors' side stepping was a small decline in interest rates in northern Europe and similar small increases in Southern Europe.

It was still the macroeconomic events that had control of the financial markets with Spain, China and the U.S. in the lead roles.

U.S.: ISM services index surprisingly rose in September

The U.S. ISM index of activity in the service sector, ISM non-manufacturing, rose to index 55.1 in September from 53.7 the previous month.

Currency: Small adjustments but fall in Australian dollar

Tuesday and it’s again slow with movements in international currency markets. Investors follow the familiar pattern of strengthening of the euro as the risk desire increased, while the dollar and the yen weakened. There are, however, relatively small shifts, although there is no doubt about the trend.

Europe: Steady increases kicks off the last quarter

The European stock markets opened the fourth quarter with decent gains after the release of the results of the Spanish bank test, which showed a capital needs in the context of what was devoted to the Spanish banking sector in the EU rescue fund EFSF. Moreover, U.S. data helped lift the mood as the ISM index for U.S. manufacturing showed a somewhat larger increase than expected.

Currency: Peace and safety in the currency markets

Stagnation is the best word to describe the international currency markets Thursday. Investors enjoy themselves in their shelter from the news from both debt crisis as well as the macroeconomic front. But it is only a matter of time, according to analysts.

Bonds: The Spanish problems pours in

The yield spread between South and North Europe widened considerably Wednesday, when there were major decline in interest rates in Northern Europe and significant increases in Southern Europe and especially Spain.

Europe: Mining industry under pressure despite positive market

It was much of the day relatively quiet on the European stock markets Tuesday. But as investors got new economic data from the United States in the form of particular consumer confidence a trickling market turned - if not flashy – to a plus. Consumer confidence surprised positively with an increase of 70.3 against the expected 63.1 got liquidity back in the market.

Europe: Investors pulled back

European investors pulled back from the stock market Monday after a weekend, which showed that Germany and France still does not quite agree to how the crisis should be handled. While France wants as quickly as possible a launch of a joint bank union, German Chancellor Angela Merkel does not want to set a time for it.

Commodities: Gold still rides on the wave from the debt crisis

The price of gold rose Friday morning after analysts at Bank of America and Deutsche Bank made their estimates for prices in the coming year. This happens after the Federal Reserve announced a third round of quantitative easing and the Bank of Japan a few days ago announced that the bank would raise fund for bond purchases.

Bonds: Europe in small side steps

European bond yields Thursday painted a picture of a somewhat indecisive market after a number of key areas such as European consumer confidence and U.S. business outlook index from Philadelphia Fed more or less equalized Wednesday’s fluctuations.

Currency: yen and yuan in trampolining

At Wednesday's currency market it was especially Asian currencies, which attracted attention. Both the Chinese yuan and the Japanese yen gave it as a spring gymnasts against the dollar and the two currencies internal balance of power could clearly be read in the Japanese central bank support programs.

Bonds: Falling interest rates in both the north and south

A fall in the European stock markets Tuesday had investors seeking back in the safe haven in the bond market.

Stocks: Profit taking in New York

The U.S. investors followed the trend in Europe and took some of their winnings home after days of sharp rises. The leading index seeped through the day and was in the red by market close.

Gold heading towards $ 2000 per ounce

The price of gold may be headed for a new record within six months. So believes the Canadian investment bank TD Securities, who sees the price reach $ 2000 per ounce as the new quantitative easing in the U.S. may increase inflation.

Stocks: Europe high in the air - Wall Street loses steam

It was a really good day on the European stock markets, and the investors can largely thank the U.S. central bank chairman Ben Bernanke for that. In the U.S. the stock market flew out of the starting blocks from the morning in New York, but the air is four hours later gone a little out of the balloon.

Investors welcome the Fed's checkbook

The U.S. investors after some indecision decided that the new round of central bank bond purchases provides better prospects for companies.

Bond purchase of 40 billion dollar a month

The Fed, sets in motion a large-scale purchases of mortgage bonds and ratchets up the printing press. Moreover Operation Twist continues.

Bonds: Interest rate increases after German yes

Wednesday's developments in the bond market showed increasing interest in the strong northern European economies.

Europe: German court voting in favor of participation in the ESM

The German Constitutional Court has approved its participation in the European Stability Mechanism, ESM.

Currency: Quiet market opens up new opportunities

The players in the international currency markets is again Tuesday extremely reluctant to take new positions on the books. But the quiet markets is not so bad that it's not good for something.

Europe: Marginal fluctuations without actual trend

The European stock markets closed Monday with marginal losses. Investors were unsure of the direction of the market should, and risk appetite was again up for debate.

The weekend's weak economic data from China and Japan suggest a slowdown in global growth, and new initiatives from the Chinese authorities can become a reality, just as the Federal Reserve, monetary policy meeting Thursday may result in additional quantitative easing to increase growth and specifically employment.

Weak U.S. economy may force Bernanke to take action

A majority of analysts expect the Fed at its meeting Thursday will announce support acquisitions to boost the U.S. economy.

The continued weakness in the U.S. data is likely to force the Federal Reserve to initiate another round of bond purchases with the aim of forcing borrowing costs down and boost the U.S. economy.

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Currency: Euro pushed up by poor job report

The past week has been in the common European currency's favor, and Friday the enthusiasm for the euro had no end.

For not only did the European Central Bank Thursday put heavy lines in the currency as one of the three major global currency units. The central bank also launched a European version of the American "operation twist" with the purchase of short-term bonds from the debt-ridden southern European countries.

Shares and interest rates fall after disappointing job report

The disappointing U.S. employment report draws negative track the financial markets, where both equities and interest rates fall.

The German DAX stock index fell by 0.4 percent, as the job report was announced.  After a few minutes the DAX index recovered again.

Europe: ECB opened the floodgates

There was distinct relief in European markets after the ECB's presentation of a rescue plan for the euro and the debt-ridden southern European countries. After days of anxious waiting markets could relate to something real, and the investors were not disappointed. Quite the contrary. The wait was finally over, and it created intense activity and sharply rising prices.

Europe: Cautious dance before the ECB meeting

With the exception of London's FTSE 100 index, which fell 0.3 percent, there were generally small increases on the European stock markets on Wednesday.

The general European Stoxx 600 index rose by 0.1 per cent. to 265.56 after taking small jumps up during the day. Among the index stocks, the British soft drinks manufacturer Britvic rose to the top with an increase of 12.6 percent to 369.9 pence. The increase began early in the day, when Bloomberg News reported that there is talk of a merger with soft drink competitor AG Barr, which among other things produces the popular Orangina-soft drink.

Currency: Speculation on the ECB's intentions strengthens euro

Euro strengthened against the dollar and the yen on Tuesday morning on speculation that the ECB's president, Mario Draghi, will give the debt-ridden euro countries a helping hand by buying their bonds in the market.

According to Jean-Paul Gauze, who sits in the European Parliament for France, Mario Draghi said to the European parliament that he was open to the possibility of buying government bonds years in the market with a maturity of up to three.

Moody's: EU credit in the balance

The credit rating of the EU is in danger of being lowered.

The rating agency Moody's said that it has changed its outlook for the current assessment of the EU in a negative direction. It is usually a warning that creditworthiness will soon be downgraded.

Commodities: Large price increases after Bernanke speech

Oil prices rose over the weekend on top of Jackson Hole Symposium and Ben Bernanke's speech, which did not offer clear signs of new quantitative easing, although unemployment in the U.S. economy worries head of the U.S. Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, the U.S. oil production is these days resumed after Hurricane Isaac, and is Monday morning up to 28 percent of normal capacity.

Currency: Utter silence ahead of the ECB meeting Thursday

If there was quiet in the international currency markets late last week, there is deafening silence Monday. The market responded only briefly to chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke's speech on the financial summit in Jackson Hole on Friday night.

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