CAD Touches 11 Year Low Against USD, UK Government Sells RBS Stake at a Loss
August 4, 2015 6:20 am
Asian shares ended in slightly positive territory after US PMI data came in worse than expected and gave the Federal Reserve something to think about regarding the timing of an Interest rate hike later this year. US stocks were dragged lower as falling oil prices caused energy shares to drop to a three year low after factory data from China raised concerns over the words second biggest economy. The Dow fell 0.52% to close at 17,598.2. The S&P 500 fell 0.28% to 2,098.04.
The Dollar held firm against the Yen at 127.00, while the Euro fell slightly lower against the Dollar, trading around $1.0940. After the slide in commodity prices, commodity currencies are in focus. The Canadian Dollar was nearly flat on the day, though it edged down earlier to touch a fresh 11 year low of C$1.3176 per U.S.D. The Australian Dollar last traded at $0.72330, up about 0.6% on the day and holding above last week’s six-year low of $0.7234, after the Reserve Bank of Australia held its cash rate unchanged at a record low 2.0% as expected.
Spot gold was down about 0.2% at 1,084 per ounce, dropping for a third session in four with a 5-1/2-year low in sight, as expectations that the Fed is set to raise interest rates this year undermined the precious metal.
Within the equity space, RBS is in focus after the body that holds the Government’s stake decided to sell 630m shares, representing 5.4% of the bank, in a quick-fire sale to institutional investors at 330p per share, 7.6p below Monday’s closing price. The government is facing criticism this morning for selling off the shares at what would amount to a loss of over £1 billion. RBS stock is currently down by 0.74 at 335.10 per share.
Asian shares ended in slightly positive territory after US PMI data came in worse than expected and gave the Federal Reserve something to think about regarding the timing of an Interest rate hike later this year. US stocks were dragged lower as falling oil prices caused energy shares to drop to a three year low after factory data from China raised concerns over the words second biggest economy. The Dow fell 0.52% to close at 17,598.2. The S&P 500 fell 0.28% to 2,098.04.
The Dollar held firm against the Yen at 127.00, while the Euro fell slightly lower against the Dollar, trading around $1.0940. After the slide in commodity prices, commodity currencies are in focus. The Canadian Dollar was nearly flat on the day, though it edged down earlier to touch a fresh 11 year low of C$1.3176 per U.S.D. The Australian Dollar last traded at $0.72330, up about 0.6% on the day and holding above last week’s six-year low of $0.7234, after the Reserve Bank of Australia held its cash rate unchanged at a record low 2.0% as expected.
Spot gold was down about 0.2% at 1,084 per ounce, dropping for a third session in four with a 5-1/2-year low in sight, as expectations that the Fed is set to raise interest rates this year undermined the precious metal.
Within the equity space, RBS is in focus after the body that holds the Government’s stake decided to sell 630m shares, representing 5.4% of the bank, in a quick-fire sale to institutional investors at 330p per share, 7.6p below Monday’s closing price. The government is facing criticism this morning for selling off the shares at what would amount to a loss of over £1 billion. RBS stock is currently down by 0.74 at 335.10 per share.
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