Swiss Franc Climbs to Two-Year High Versus Dollar as Carry Trades Unwound

(Bloomberg) -- The Swiss franc rose to its highest in
more than two years against the dollar as investors sold riskier
assets, such as equities, and repaid loans taken out in the Swiss
currency.

The franc advanced against 14 of the 16 most-traded
currencies as stocks in Europe and Asia fell, following a drop in
benchmark U.S. equity markets last week. Traders unwound so-
called carry trades, where they borrowed the franc to buy higher-
yielding assets, on concern U.S. subprime mortgage losses will
erode economic growth.


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Singapore Dollar to Rise 10 Percent to Record $1.38, BNP Paribas Predicts

(Bloomberg) -- The Singapore dollar may rise 10
percent to a record in a year as an influx of tourists and
bankers supports economic growth, BNP Paribas SA said.

The currency may reach S$1.38 per dollar by June 30, passing
the record of S$1.3835 reached in 1995, as the Monetary Authority
of Singapore seeks gains to curb inflation, said Thio Chin Loo,
senior foreign-exchange strategist in Singapore at France's
largest bank by market value.


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Fed's Bernanke May Alter Rhetoric, Not Interest Rates After Market Turmoil

(Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S.
Bernanke may respond to the latest squall in financial markets
the same way he did when turbulence hit four months ago: with a
change in words rather than policy.

Bernanke and his colleagues may suggest after their
meeting tomorrow that the risks to economic growth have
increased following the rout in stock and credit markets -- just
as they did after their March meeting.


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Polish Zloty Set for Weekly Gain as Investors' Appetite for Risk Revives

(Bloomberg) -- The Polish zloty was poised for a
weekly gain, advancing to an eight-day high against the euro as
investors regained their appetite for emerging-market assets.

Investors resumed buying stocks and higher-yielding
currencies such as the zloty, the Turkish lira and the South
African rand as concern abated that losses on U.S. subprime
mortgages would slow global economic growth.


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US economic growth rebounds in second quarter

(Reuters) - U.S. economic growth rebounded during the second quarter to its strongest pace since the beginning of last year on a surge in business investment, more government spending and a better trade performance, the Commerce Department reported on Friday.

Gross domestic product that measures total output within U.S. borders gained at a 3.4 percent annual rate -- the fastest since 4.8 percent in the first quarter of 2006 -- after barely growing at a downwardly revised 0.6 percent pace in the first quarter. Second-quarter growth exceeded Wall Street economists' forecasts for a 3.2 percent rate of increase.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Gold Falls on Concern Housing Report Signals Slowing Economy; Silver Falls

(Bloomberg) -- Gold fell from a three-month high in
New York on concern U.S. economic growth will slow, reducing
demand for precious metals as a hedge against inflation. Silver
futures also declined.

Purchases of new homes fell 6.6 percent in June, more than
economists predicted, and orders for durable goods unexpectedly
fell for a second month, the Commerce Department said today. Some
investors buy gold to preserve purchasing power in times of
accelerating price increases.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 2-Brazil cenbank says future rate cuts need caution

(Reuters) - SAO PAULO, Brazil, July 26 - Brazil's central
bank said the country's strong currency has allowed for deeper
interest rate cuts, but that accelerating economic growth will
require it to be especially cautious about future rate
reductions.




In minutes released on Thursday from its rate-setting
meeting last week, the bank's monetary policy committee also
said that despite uncertainties about the strength of the U.S.
economy the outlook for continued dollar inflows to Brazil
remained positive.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Dollar Rises Against Euro as Charts Suggest Currency Is Declining Too Fast

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar rose against the euro as
charts some investors use to predict currency moves suggested
its decline to a record was too rapid.

The U.S. currency gained against all but three of its most
actively traded counterparts as average profit growth for the
second quarter among U.S. firms in the Standard & Poor's 500
Index has so far exceeded analysts' forecasts. The dollar has
fallen 1.2 percent against the euro so far this month on
speculation housing weakness may slow economic growth.


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Mexico's peso falls sharply on US economy concerns

(Reuters) - The peso was off 0.52 percent at 10.864 per
dollar, while the benchmark IPC stock index slipped 0.70
percent to 31,242 points.




U.S. existing-home sales fell more than expected in June,
bolstering worries about U.S. economic growth. The United
States buys nearly 90 percent of Mexican exports, and trouble
in the U.S. subprime mortgage sector has weighed on equities in
both countries in recent weeks.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Turkish Markets May Rally After Erdogan's Justice Party Wins Re-Election

(Bloomberg) -- Turkish stocks, bonds and the lira
may gain after voters re-elected Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan, giving him a mandate to extend policies that won Turkey
European Union membership talks and helped bring 21 straight
quarters of economic growth.

Erdogan's Justice and Development Party took 47 percent of
the vote with almost all ballots counted at 1 a.m. in the
capital Ankara, according to the state-run Anatolia News Agency.
That's likely to give the party 342 lawmakers in the 550-seat
parliament, CNN Turk television said.


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TREASURIES-Bonds rally on credit fears, stock slump

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 20 - The U.S. Treasury debt market
rallied on Friday, with benchmark yields falling to six-week
lows as investors flocked to government bonds from stocks and
other risky assets on fresh subprime loan and credit worries.




Technically related buying also fueled the gains, with bond
bulls able to push through key yield levels on heightened
anxiety that subprime mortgage losses would spread to other
markets and eventually shave economic growth, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Euro Gains May Stall at $1.3850 on Barrier Options, Mitsubishi-UFJ Says

(Bloomberg) -- The euro's gains against the dollar
may stall around $1.3850 because of selling to protect options
that would become worthless should the currency rise further,
according to Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd.

The single European currency yesterday rose to a record high
of $1.3833 after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke told
U.S. lawmakers the housing market may weigh on economic growth
and inflation may slow.


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Sinopec First-Half Oil Processing Rises 6.4 Percent on China's Fuel Demand

(Bloomberg) -- China Petroleum & Chemical Corp.,
Asia's largest oil refiner, processed 6.4 percent more crude in
the first half as China's economic growth boosted demand for
fuels to run power plants, cars and machinery.

Oil refining rose to 76.25 million metric tons in the first
six months, Sinopec, as Beijing-based China Petroleum is known,
said on its Web site today. Crude oil production increased 2.1
percent and natural gas output gained 11 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Shoprite Holdings Full-Year Sales Rise 16 Percent on Consumer Spending

(Bloomberg) -- Shoprite Holdings Ltd., South Africa's
second-largest grocer, said annual sales gained 16 percent after
faster economic growth boosted consumer spending.

Sales in the 12 months through June 30 reached 38.9 billion
rand ($5.6 billion), compared with the year earlier, Cape Town-
based Shoprite said in a stock exchange statement today. Revenue at
the main Shoprite brand increased 14 percent while the Checkers
chain advanced 15 percent, the company said.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Dollar May Drop Versus Yen Before Report Forecast to Show Cooler Inflation

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar may drop against the yen
before U.S. government reports forecast to signal cooling
inflation and waning foreign demand for U.S. securities.

The U.S. currency dropped to a 26-year low against the
pound and the weakest since 1985 against the New Zealand dollar
yesterday on concern that weakness in U.S. housing will curb
economic growth and push the Federal Reserve to cut interest
rates. Investors bought yen yesterday in part on speculation
investors will exit risky trades because of mounting losses in
U.S. securities backed by subprime mortgage loans.


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GLOBAL MARKETS-Europe shares near 6-1/2 yr peak; oil eyes record

(Reuters) - The dollar hit a 22-year low against the New Zealand
currency and held near last week's record low versus the euro,
weighed by expectations that U.S. interest rates will stay on
hold when other major central banks are raising rates, boosting
yield on their currencies.




Fresh optimism about global economic growth grew on Friday
after upbeat second-quarter earnings boosted U.S. stocks to
record highs. This helped to ease concerns about the impact on
the U.S. economy of potential fallout from the U.S. high-risk
mortgage sector, which weighed on shares last week.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Japan's Bond Futures Advance After Downgrades of U.S. Subprime-Backed Debt

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's 10-year bond futures rose in
the past week after downgrades of debt backed by U.S. subprime
mortgages sparked demand for the safety of government securities.

Bond futures on July 11 had the biggest gain since August
after Moody's Investors Service cut ratings on $5.2 billion of
debt backed by loans to homeowners with poor credit histories.
Concern economic growth in the U.S., Japan's largest export
market, will slow helped bond futures rebound from the steepest
weekly drop since last month.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Treasuries Headed for a Weekly Advance on Concern Over Subprime Mortgages

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries were headed for a weekly
advance on concern weakness in subprime mortgages may slow U.S.
economic growth.

Ten-year note yields were down more than 5 basis points for
the week. They dropped the most in more than four months on July
10 as Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investors Service warned
about the credit quality of subprime mortgages.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Treasuries Little Changed Before Government Report on U.S. Retail Sales

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasuries were little changed
before a government report that will probably show retail sales
declined last month, suggesting a housing slump and higher fuel
costs are contributing to weaker economic growth.

Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investors Service prompted
the biggest surge in Treasuries in more than four months on July
10 after they warned about the credit quality of U.S. subprime
mortgages. Benchmark 10-year notes have pared their gains in the
past two days as a rebound in global stock markets eased demand
for less risky assets such as government debt.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

China's Yuan Has Biggest Weekly Advance Since 2005; Government Bonds Rise

(Bloomberg) -- The yuan had its biggest weekly
advance since the end of a dollar link in 2005 on speculation
pressure from the U.S. for quicker currency gains will increase
as the trade gap between the two nations widens.

China's trade surplus grew to a record in June, driving
foreign-exchange reserves to an all-time high, boosting excess
cash in the financial system and making it more difficult for
the government to cool economic growth. The U.S. trade deficit
with China widened in May, the Commerce Department said
yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News