Foreign Exchange News

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Copper was higher in mid-afternoon trade, in line with the other base metals, amid short-covering, after Friday's fall in prices, while tin reached a new record high as supply concerns boosted buying. Copper shed $200 at its lowest point in the final trading session of last week, pressured by a hefty rise in stockpiles of the red metal monitored by the London Metal Ex ...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Oil slipped in afternoon trade as the firmer dollar encouraged profit-taking after Friday's all-time highs. New York-traded WTI and London-traded Brent crude both shed more than $2 a barrel at their lowest point as the U.S. currency rallied against the euro. A stronger greenback makes dollar-priced crude more expensive for holders of other currencies. "Investors ...

ATHENS (Thomson Financial) - Greek refiner Hellenic Petroleum SA said first-quarter net profit jumped 77 percent year-on-year to 97 million euros, as solid inventory gains and non-refining operations offset weaker reefing margins and a falling U.S. dollar. EBITDA was 141 million euros, up 39 percent. However, the company said that "clean" EBITDA excluding inventory gains fell 4 percent  ...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - The euro and the pound remained soft, mostly against the dollar, on expectations that interest rate differentials are set to shift in months ahead. The euro has suffered from weak economic data -- in consumer and business confidence, retail sales and manufacturing activity -- which have suggested that the euro zone is set for a sharp slowdown in growth. The common cu ...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Oil slipped from the all-time high it hit on Friday as the dollar strengthened against the major currencies, but remained supported above $125 a barrel by ongoing supply fears in Nigeria and tensions in the Middle East. The dollar was firmer against both the euro and sterling this morning as expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will pause in its rate-cutting cycle un ...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Gold softened in early trade as the dollar firmed a touch against the euro amid expectations that interest rate differentials will shift in the months ahead, and as oil prices slipped from Friday's record highs. A stronger greenback weakens gold's appeal as an alternative investment, and makes it more expensive for holders of other currencies. "We seem to be rea ...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - The pound was boosted against other currencies by the release of data on UK producer prices, which soared at the fastest pace on record in April. Input prices rose 2.4 percent, well above analyst forecasts of a 2.0 percent rate, for a big 23.0 percent annual gain. Output prices were up 1.4 percent on the month, double expectations for just 0.7 percent. All the figures ...

SINGAPORE (Thomson Financial) - Asian shares pared their losses in afternoon trade Monday after earlier falling with Wall Street as crude set a fresh record, while Australia extended gains on news of a proposed merger that would create the country's biggest banking group. After trading in the red through the morning, the Nikkei was last up 0.7 percent at 13,749.69. The broader Topix was up 0.1 pe ...

BEIJING (XFN-ASIA) - The central bank has set the yuan central parity rate at a record 6.9820 to the dollar, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trading System. The rate, published on the official Chinamoney website (www.chinamoney.com.cn), compares with the midpoint of 7.0005 set the previous trading day. The People's Bank of China (PBoC) started setting a daily central parity rate on Jan 4 ...

LONDON (Thomson Financial) - The Canadian dollar strengthened after employment data showed a bigger-than-expected gain in April, despite a rise in the unemployment rate. Employment in Canada rose by 19,000 people, similar to the increase seen in March, and well above Thomson IFR Markets' consensus forecast for a 5,000 gain. However, the unemployment rate nudged up to 6.1 percent from 6.0 percent ...