Europe Pares Early Gains

Ivaylo
27 Jun, 2006
New York City

Shares advanced early in the trading, as oil producers were given a boost by crude trading at over $72 a barrel and as upbeat U.S. housing data allayed some economic growth fears. Later, much of the gains were erased as advances in the oil sector were largely offset. By mid-morning, London

[R]6:30AM Europe erases early gains.[/R]
European markets rose slightly in mid-morning trade. London’s FTSE 100 gained 0.1%to 5,685.3, while Frankfurt’s Xetra Dax was unchanged at 5,514.46 and the CAC 40 in Paris climbed 0.1% to 4,806.5. On the corporate front, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena advanced 1.5% after it announced it was looking to integrate with Finsoe, the holding company which owns a controlling stake in Italian insurer Unipol. Anglo Irish Bank climbed 1.3% as recent losses presented investors with a good buying opportunity. Oil stocks added some weight to European gains. Overnight, US crude advanced to $72 a barrel for the first time in two weeks on fears that increasing demand for gasoline would sap US stockpiles. France’s Total advanced 0.9%, while Norway’s Statoil added 2.1%. France’s Suez climbed 1.2% after the utility was upgraded by UBS from “neutral” to “buy”.

Crude oil advanced 51 cents at $72.31 a barrel by 0930 GMT, reaching a two-week high after rising 93 cents on Monday. London Brent crude advanced 52 cents to $71.24. Gold in London traded at $587.70 per troy ounce, up from $579.20 late Monday. The dollar gained against the European currency. The euro traded at $1.2578, down from $1.2580 late Monday in New York. The greenback bought 116.36 Japanese yen, up from 116.28. The British pound traded at $1.8223, down from $1.8234.

[R]5:15AM Gold and silver close almost unchanged on Monday.[/R]
The August gold contract ended 30 cents lower at $587.70 a troy ounce. The contract moved slightly into positive territory to reach a session high of $589.50 an ounce for the day session but was unable to hold onto gains. The most-active July silver contract followed gold''s lead and finished lower on the day at $10.24 an ounce, down 4.5 cents. July platinum closed $14.40 higher at $1,181.30 an ounce and September palladium finished $10.75 higher at $320.55 an ounce. The most-active September copper contract ended up 8.20 cents at $3.230 per pound.

August crude oil advanced 93 cents to $71.80 a barrel. July gasoline rose 5.12 cents to $2.1788 a gallon. On the New York Board of Trade, Arabica coffee futures managed to hold above its recent nine-month low at 94.50 cents a pound. Futures on raw sugar in foreign ports for July closed up 0.31 cent at 15.76 cents a pound while October advanced 0.38 cent to 16.31 cents a pound.