Dec 16, 2013 12:18 AM PT
Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Silver slipped 0.5 percent to $19.5971 an ounce.
Most European stocks fell and U.S. equity futures dropped with silver before a two-day Federal Reserve meeting starting tomorrow, while oil rallied. Asian stocks fell toward a three-month low as a survey showed Chinese manufacturing expanding less than estimated and the yen rose.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped 0.1 percent at 8:03 a.m. in London, with three shares falling for every two that gained. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures lost 0.3 percent and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.7 percent. Japan’s Topix declined 1.3 percent as the yen advanced against all 16 major peers. Gold and silver lost at least 0.5 percent. Brent crude rose 0.3 percent as rebels refused to open Libya’s ports, while natural gas sank 1.3 percent.
Economists see an increased chance Fed policy makers will begin reducing stimulus amid signs of improvement in the U.S. labor market and after lawmakers passed a bipartisan budget. Private surveys on French and Chinese manufacturing missed estimates ahead of other reports today that may signal growth in factory activity in the euro region and the U.S., according to Bloomberg surveys.
“Tapering is all that the market cares about at the moment,” said Khiem Do, Hong Kong-based head of Asian multi-asset strategy at Baring Asset Management Ltd., which oversees about $60 billion. “Some are predicting the Chinese economy will continue to slow down, perhaps in a more sustainable path.”
Chinese Manufacturing
Two companies fell for each that rose on the Euro Stoxx 600 Index and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index headed for its lowest close since September.
The Shanghai Composite Index (SHCOMP) dropped 1.6 percent, decreasing for a fifth day in the longest stretch of losses since June. The preliminary reading of the Purchasing Managers’ Index by HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics missed the 50.9 median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. The gauge has signaled expansion since August.
The government will maintain continuity and stability in its macro-economic policies in 2014 and stick to a prudent monetary policy and proactive fiscal policy, China Central Television reported, citing a statement from the annual Central Economic Work Conference that ended Dec. 13.
Japan’s Topix Index (TPX) fell for a fourth day, the longest losing streak in 10 weeks. Large Japanese businesses pared their projections for capital spending this fiscal year, a Bank of Japan report showed. The Tankan index of sentiment among large manufacturers beat estimates, indicating confidence is at the highest since 2007.
Yen Climbs
The yen climbed 0.3 percent to 102.91 per dollar and advanced 0.3 percent to 141.44 per euro. The Bank of Japan, which buys more than 7 trillion yen ($68 billion) of the nation’s government bonds every month to end deflation, starts a two-day meeting on Dec. 19.
Australia’s dollar slipped 0.2 percent to 89.45 U.S. cents after a 1.5 percent drop in the five days to Dec. 13 capped its eighth straight weekly decline, the longest slump since 1985.
Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn Stevens signaled last week a preference for supporting the economy via a weaker currency than with further rate cuts. An exchange rate of 85 U.S. cents is “closer to the mark” than 95 cents, he said in an interview with the Australian Financial Review.
Brent futures rose to $109.16 a barrel after falling 2.5 percent last week. Libyan rebel leader Ibrahim Al Jedran told a news conference yesterday that three key oil ports closed since the end of July will remain shut after the government rejected demands that included a share of crude revenue.
Natural gas futures dropped to $4.29 per million British thermal units as meteorologists predicted moderating temperatures that would curb demand for the heating fuel after frigid weather last week.
U.S. Stocks
Silver slipped 0.8 percent to $19.5478 an ounce, while gold lost 0.5 percent to $1,232.75 before theFederal Open Market Committee meets tomorrow. The Fed may begin reducing its $85 billion of monthly bond purchases at its Dec. 17-18 meeting, according to 34 percent of economists in a Dec. 6 Bloomberg survey, up from 17 percent in a Nov. 8 poll.
S&P 500 futures, which dropped as much as 0.8 percent, signaled the gauge may extend last week’s 1.7 percent drop that was the worst such performance since August. House of Representativespassed the first bipartisan budget in four years, clearing the way for final Senate passage this week. The deal would avoid another government shutdown and ease automatic spending cuts.
“It’s a 50/50 call whether the Fed will go this week but certainly some of the things that they were worried about in September have been resolved or are looking better and they’re definitely closer to tapering,” said Bevan Graham, chief economist in Wellington at AMP Capital Investors Ltd. “The market is more ready for it now.”
Economic Reports
Industrial production in the U.S. probably rose 0.6 percent last month from October when it fell 0.1 percent, while a gauge of manufacturing in the New York region is likely to have advanced to a three-month high, separate Bloomberg News surveys of economists showed.
In Europe, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is scheduled to speak to the European Parliament in Brussels, while Markit Economics will probably say today that its composite index for the services and manufacturing industries in the currency bloc rose to 52 in December from 51.7 in November.
To contact the reporters on this story: Glenys Sim in Singapore at gsim4@bloomberg.net; Jonathan Burgos in Singapore at jburgos4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Gentle at ngentle2@bloomberg.net
