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South Korea PPI Slips 0.4% In June





Producer prices in South Korea were down 0.4 percent on month in June, the Bank of Korea said on Wednesday following the 0.3 percent contraction in May.


Individually, prices for agricultural, forestry and marine products fell 1.2 percent on month, while manufacturing products shed 0.6 percent, and services and utilities were unchanged.


On a yearly basis, prices advanced 2.8 percent after rising 3.4 percent in the previous month.


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Wall Street Mostly Higher as Nasdaq Ends at Record Peak





U.S. equities finished mostly higher on Tuesday as investors priced in more corporate quarterly reports. The Nasdaq reported its eighth session in a row of advances, the longest streak since its 10-day string in February 2015.


The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 0.25 percent at 21,574.73, weighed down by Goldman Sachs. The index tumbled over 150 points at its session lows.


The S&P 500 rose 0.06 percent at 2,460.61, a record closing peak with information technology leading gainers. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5 percent at 6,344.31, a record peak. The index touched an intraday record and an eight-day winning streak, its longest since February 2015.


Goldman Sachs added the most losses on the Dow after posting a 40 percent decline in second-quarter bond trading revenue. It's top and bottom-line quarterly results exceeded Wall Street expectations.


Netflix jumped over 13 percent to an all-time peak. The American entertainment company said it added 5.2 million total memberships in its second quarter. Facebook also reached a record intraday high.


Bank of America reported quarterly results which exceeded expectations. Its stock, however, was weighed down by a sharp loss in trading revenue.


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Japan Has Y439.907 Billion Trade Surplus





Japan had a merchandise trade surplus of 439.907 billion yen in June, the Ministry of Finance said on Thursday.


That was shy of expectations for a surplus of 488.0 billion yen following the 204.2 billion yen deficit in May.


Exports were up 9.7 percent on year, topping expectations for an increase of 9.5 percent following the 14.9 percent jump in the previous month.


Imports climbed an annual 15.5 percent versus forecasts for 14.4 percent after gaining 17.8 percent a month earlier.


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Wall Street Advanced, Buoyed by Better-than-Expected Earnings





U.S. equities finished at record peaks on Wednesday as investors priced in key quarterly earnings.


The Dow Jones industrial average ended at a record peak, climbing 0.31 percent to 21,640.75. The Nasdaq composite gained 0.64 percent to finish at a record high of 6,385.04, also touching an intraday all-time peak.


The S&P 500 advanced 0.54 percent at 2,473.83, a record, with Vertex Pharmaceuticals leading the index higher, climbing 21 percent. The index also posted an intraday record. The technology sector also boosted the S&P, which broke above its all-time peak set in March 2000.


The S&P tech sector has been the best-performing sector in 2017 with a 22.8 percent gain.


Among stocks active in corporate news, Morgan Stanley posted higher-than-expected second quarter results across the board, as trading revenue came in above expectations. Other banks like Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase saw their trading businesses struggle in the previous quarter.


IBM weighed on the Dow after its quarterly revenue came in below expectations. The stock dropped 4.2 percent to $147.53, having touched a 13-month low of $146.71.


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European Stocks Retreat as Euro Firms on Draghi Comments





European stocks dropped as investors claim exporters will suffer due to a stronger euro, following European Central Bank President Mario Draghi's remarks which buoyed the common currency.


The pan-European Stoxx 600 Index closed 0.4 percent lower. The benchmark trimmed a gain that hit 0.5 percent prior to when Draghi said officials will discuss altering the ECB's bond-buying program.


A stronger currency has become a concern for investors amid the second-quarter earnings season, as strategists at Deutsche Bank warned that every ten percent in the euro takes five percent off the STOXX 600's earnings.


Europe's basic resources sector was the largest decliner, losing 1.9 percent, with export-heavy aerospace defense companies and autos all under pressure.


European banks fell 0.4 percent, led lower by a 5.2 percent decline in Nordea's shares. The Nordic region's largest bank by market value dropped after posting second-quarter operating earnings below analysts' estimates. Danske Bank fell 1.4 percent following its quarterly earnings.


Germany's Lufthansa led the travel and leisure sector, which tumbled 8.6 percent. British budget airline easyJet dropped almost six percent following cautious comments on the outlook for summer pricing.


Technology stocks were led higher by Ingenico Group, rising over five percent, after reports that it will buy rival Bambora for 1.5 billion euros. Tags: Eurozone, Stocks, bonds, Equity markets


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MERCOSUR: Bloc Could Expel Venezuela, Says Argentina Minister





Mercosur will permanently expel Venezuela from the bloc if the country's government advances with its intentions to call for a Constituent Assembly election on July 30, said the Argentinean Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie at the sidelines of the bloc summit in Mendoza.


"Some may read it as an expelling, but at the moment we do not have to discuss if it is a suspension of this or that. We have to talk about the fact that there is no democracy in Venezuela, and we will ratify it if there is no capacity for dialogue," the chancellor told reporters.


Venezuela was suspended from Mercosur for disrespecting the bloc's regulations. Earlier, Argentina President Mauricio Macri said that Mercosur is expecting the early adoption of an electoral calendar.


President Nicol?s Maduro's opponents carried out a 24-hour national strike as a part of the "zero hour" initiative, which seeks the president's resignation.


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UK Consumers Face Highest Pressure in 3 Years - IHS Markit





The financial situation of British consumers has weakened at its quickest rate in three years in July, with families increasingly shying away from bigger purchases like automobiles, holidays and household appliances, a survey revealed.


Financial data firm IHS Markit said its monthly Household Finance Index fell to 41.8 from June's 43.7, its lowest since July 2014, which reveals a persistent squeeze on household incomes as inflation increases quicker than wages.


IHS Markit said only 27 percent of the households it surveyed expects rates to increase in the next six months, the weakest rate since October. The latest survey also revealed the willingness of households to make large purchases, which has dropped to its weakest since December 2013.


British consumer price inflation hit its highest in almost four years at nearly three percent in May, before softening in June. However, annual wage growth is less than two percent.


Official data set to be released on Wednesday is seen to show that economic growth accelerated only slightly in the three months to the end of June.


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Australia's Consumer Confidence Strengthens





Australia's consumer confidence improved during the week ended July 23, after falling in the previous two weeks, a weekly survey compiled by the ANZ bank and Roy Morgan Research showed Tuesday.


The consumer confidence index climbed to 115.1 from 112.5 in the preceding week. Moreover, this was the highest score since February.


The increase in confidence was driven primarily by an improvement in consumers' views towards both current and future economic conditions.


The index measuring 'time to buy a major household item' rose 1.8 percent last week. Inflation expectations were unchanged at 4.3 percent on a four-week moving average basis.


"The solid increase in confidence last week is very encouraging and likely reflects another good jobs report along with the RBA's broadly positive assessment of domestic conditions in the minutes of the July board meeting," ANZ's head of Australian Economics, David Plank, commented.


"We expect labour market conditions to continue improving, although at a slower pace, now that the period of catch up between official and survey based measures is largely complete."


"We will be closely watching Governor Lowe's speech and the CPI release out later this week for further insight into the RBA's assessment of the labour market and the course for monetary policy."

Japan Producer Prices +0.8% In June





Producer prices in Japan were up 0.8 percent on year in June, the Bank of Japan said on Wednesday - unchanged and in line with expectations.


On a monthly basis, producer prices fell 0.1 percent following the flat reading in May.


Individually, prices were up for transportation and advertising; they were down for leasing and rental.


For the second quarter of 2017, producer prices were up 0.8 percent on year and 0.4 percent on quarter.

BRAZIL: Steelmakers Estimate Higher Output And Lower Sales In 2017





The Brazilian Steel Institute (IABr), which represents steelmakers that operate in the country, kept unchanged its forecast for the local steel output in 2017 at 32.420 million tons, a 3.8% increase compared to last year. However, the estimate for domestic steel sales was revised down to 16.310 million tons, a 1.3% decrease. Previously, IABR expected a 1.3% increase.


Steel exports, meanwhile, are projected to rise 9.1% in 2017, to 14.659 million tons, compared with a previous forecast of a 6.4% increase. Exports revenue should grow by 32.6%, to US$ 7.420 billion.


Steel imports are expected to rise 18.8%, to 2,232 million tons, more than the 6.6% increase anticipated by the IABr in April. Imports revenue should grow by 11.8%, to US$ 1.951 billion. Steel consumption - which includes domestic sales plus imports by distributors and consumers - is expected to rise 1.1%, to 18.418 million tons. The previous projection was a 2.9% increase.


According to the IABr chairman, Marco Polo de Mello Lopes, the steel sector is still at a delicate moment, with little internal consumption.


"The market has not recovered yet and will not resume during 2017," he told a news conference.


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