Gold Nears 4-Month Peak, S&P500 Reaches New Record High
May 15, 2015 6:21 am
Asian shares edged down slightly but were still on track for a solid weekly rise, as investors awaited more U.S. data later in the session for clues on the timing of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike. U.S. stocks ended sharply stronger on Thursday and the S&P 500 closed at a record high as investors worried less about interest rates and a weaker Dollar offered the possibility of stronger sales for U.S. multinationals. The Dow climbed 191 points to close at 18,252, the SP500 rose 22 points to end at 2,121.
The Euro scaled a nearly three-month peak of $1.1445. The common currency last stood at $1.1406, steady from late U.S. levels. The Dollar was buying 119.31 Japanese Yen, about 0.1 percent higher on the day. The Australian Dollar slipped to $0.8063 from a near four-month peak of $0.8164, while its New Zealand peer recoiled to $0.7473 , from a one-week high of $0.7564
Spot gold traded near a three-month high and was on track for its biggest weekly gain in four months on receding expectations of a U.S. hike, and as the Greenback’s weakness made it more appealing to investors holding other currencies. It was down about 0.2% on the day at $1,219.30 an ounce but was on track for a weekly rise of more than 2%. U.S. crude shed about 0.2% on the day to $59.74 a barrel but was on track to rise for a ninth week, which would be the benchmark’s longest winning streak since 1983. Front-month Brent was down about 0.1% at $66.65 but was on track for a weekly rise, after its 1.6% drop last week interrupted a month-long rally.
Within the equity space Coca Cola HBC (+3%, 1459p per share), the second-largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world in terms of volume, missed forecasts slightly with a smaller-than-expected increase in first-quarter sales. The firm said it was “encouraged” by trading in its first quarter, with volumes rising 7.2%, helped by four extra selling days, the earlier timing of the Easter holiday and a good performance in Nigeria, Poland, Romania, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
Asian shares edged down slightly but were still on track for a solid weekly rise, as investors awaited more U.S. data later in the session for clues on the timing of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike. U.S. stocks ended sharply stronger on Thursday and the S&P 500 closed at a record high as investors worried less about interest rates and a weaker Dollar offered the possibility of stronger sales for U.S. multinationals. The Dow climbed 191 points to close at 18,252, the SP500 rose 22 points to end at 2,121.
The Euro scaled a nearly three-month peak of $1.1445. The common currency last stood at $1.1406, steady from late U.S. levels. The Dollar was buying 119.31 Japanese Yen, about 0.1 percent higher on the day. The Australian Dollar slipped to $0.8063 from a near four-month peak of $0.8164, while its New Zealand peer recoiled to $0.7473 , from a one-week high of $0.7564
Spot gold traded near a three-month high and was on track for its biggest weekly gain in four months on receding expectations of a U.S. hike, and as the Greenback’s weakness made it more appealing to investors holding other currencies. It was down about 0.2% on the day at $1,219.30 an ounce but was on track for a weekly rise of more than 2%. U.S. crude shed about 0.2% on the day to $59.74 a barrel but was on track to rise for a ninth week, which would be the benchmark’s longest winning streak since 1983. Front-month Brent was down about 0.1% at $66.65 but was on track for a weekly rise, after its 1.6% drop last week interrupted a month-long rally.
Within the equity space Coca Cola HBC (+3%, 1459p per share), the second-largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world in terms of volume, missed forecasts slightly with a smaller-than-expected increase in first-quarter sales. The firm said it was “encouraged” by trading in its first quarter, with volumes rising 7.2%, helped by four extra selling days, the earlier timing of the Easter holiday and a good performance in Nigeria, Poland, Romania, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
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