Oil prices mixed in Asia

Oil prices were mixed in Asia Wednesday as investors await the release of US Federal Reserve minutes from its July meeting, while keeping an eye on the latest stockpiles data.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for September delivery rose 81 cents to $95.29 on its last day of trading. It tumbled $1.93 in New York Tuesday as speculative traders sold off ahead of its expiration date.

Brent crude for October eased 12 cents to $101.44.

Desmond Chua, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore, said dealers are squaring positions before they scrutinise the minutes of a two-day Fed meeting that ended on July 30.

Investors will be looking at whether the minutes "reveal anything insightful pertaining to tightening monetary policy", said Chua.

Bank policymakers have said the Fed will hold its near-zero interest rate policy until the US economy strengthens but may raise rates if the jobs market kept improving.

Dealers are also awaiting the latest official US stockpiles report later Wednesday from the Department of Energy, with expectations for a decline.

Crude oil stocks are projected to have fallen by 900,000 barrels on average in the week to August 15, according to analyst surveyed by the Wall Street Journal.

Gasoline stockpiles are expected to have fallen by 1.3 million barrels, while stocks of distillates, which include heating oil and diesel, are expected to have dropped by 700,000 barrels.

A decline in US stockpiles typically indicates strong demand in the world's top crude consumer, supporting global prices.

Markets are continuing to track conflicts in crude producers Libya and Iraq, as well as in Ukraine, a key conduit for Russian gas exports to Europe, analysts said.

Source: yahoo.com

Asia stocks makes slight gains!

Asian stock markets got a slight boost Wednesday from positive U.S. economic figures that reinforced expectations of eventual Fed rate hikes and a stronger dollar.

KEEPING SCORE: Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.1 percent at 25,154.62 while Japan's Nikkei 225 was little changed at 15,441.70. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was also flat while Southeast Asian markets advanced. Taiwan's Taiex rose 0.4 percent to 9,278.81 while Seoul's Kospi shed 0.1 percent to 2,068.73.
US OUTLOOK: Signs that inflation is in control in the U.S., as well as fairly positive earnings reports and other indicators of a healthy economy, are helping Asian shares. Recent data on housing has reassured regional markets that the U.S. growth is on a relatively solid track. Also helping Asian shares are positive news from Home Depot, the largest U.S. home improvement retailer, which raised its annual profit forecast after reporting strong earnings results.

FEDERAL RESERVE: It's unclear when the U.S. Federal Reserve will start raising interest rates but many analysts predict sometime in 2015. That could be a plus for countries such as Japan, where giant exporter have much to gain from a strong dollar. Eyes are on a speech later in the day by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, as well as on the release of minutes from a previous Fed policy meeting.

ANALYST TAKE: "Traders will turn their attention to the FOMC minutes later tonight, recalling a less-hawkish-than-expected minutes in July, which led to a sell-off in the dollar," said Desmond Chua, market analyst with CMC Markets in Singapore. Traders were also expecting to get more of a clue about when the first interest rate hike might come, he added.

WALL STREET: The Standard & Poor's 500 gained 0.5 percent to 1,981.60. The index is up 1.4 percent for the week and is approaching its record close of 1,987.98 reached July 24. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.5 percent to 16,919.59. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.4 percent to 4,527.51.
CURRENCIES. The dollar has surged recently to near 103 yen levels, and was trading at 103.19 yen, up from 102.95 yen late Tuesday. The euro fell to $1.3308 from $1.3322.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude for September delivery was up 49 cents at $94.97 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It dropped sharply Tuesday and is down nearly 4 percent for August due to ample supplies. The September contract expires Wednesday. The more actively traded October contract was down 6 cents at $92.80 a barrel.

Source: yahoo.com

Dollar extends gains in Asia

The dollar extended its gains on Tuesday, recovering from a sharp fall last week fueled by Washington's announcement that it had authorized air strikes in Iraq. The dollar strengthened to 102.31 yen in Tokyo midday trade, against 102.21 yen in New York late Monday.

The euro was quoted at $1.3372 and 136.86 yen, from $1.3382 and 136.79 yen in New York as concerns persisted over a possible Russian military incursion into eastern Ukraine. As the geopolitical factors have been factored in, the market continues to see a retreat of risk-off moves, which supported dollar-buying sentiment against the yen, said the analyst of the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ which is Yasuaki Amatatsu.

Investors tend to buy the yen in times of uncertainty and turmoil. The dollar rallied Monday after plunging last week on President Obama's announcement that he had authorized air strikes on Iraq along with humanitarian supply drops to prevent a "genocide" by Islamist extremists.

The prospect for a steady recovery of the US economy is also behind dollar-buying sentiment. Dealers are now moving their focus to an annual economics conference in Jackson Hole later this month to be attended by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.

Source: yahoo.com