LONDON: European shares rebounded and the euro pared losses on Wednesday after Finland approved a bailout for debt-laden Portugal but nagging worries about the euro zone's spreading debt crisis capped further advances.
Oil prices bounced back above $112.00 a barrel as the euro briefly reversed losses after the Finnish parliament approved the 78 billion euro bailout from the European Union and the IMF, with critics outnumbered by supporters of the deal.
Finland's parliament, unlike others in the region, has the right to vote on EU requests for bailout funds.
Though the move provided provided temporary relief for the euro, investors were still nervy as Europe's policy options to avert a Greek debt default appear to be dwindling fast, fuelling fears of a chain reaction affecting other heavily indebted countries in the 17-nation currency bloc.
'The Finland news is providing some relief to the euro, but the euro needs a far bigger catalyst to see it move towards $1.43,' said Audrey Childe-Freeman, EMEA head of currency strategy at JPMorgan Private Bank. 'In the near term, the euro is very much skewed towards the downside and looks very choppy.'
The euro rose to $1.4092 from around $1.4070 after the news, before pulling back to $1.4055, still 0.3 percent lower on the day.
European equities rose as investors bought beaten-down banking stocks, bucking losses in Asia and indications of a lower opening on Wall Street later.
World stocks as measured by MSCI were down 0.1 percent while the pan-European FTSEurofirst index of top shares rose 0.3 percent, with anxiety about the potential for further Greek contagion limiting gains.
'The risks at the moment are probably on the downside. There is complete uncertainty about what the end-game is on Greece and the possibility of restructuring,' said Michael McNaught-Davis, head of international equities at Scottish Widows, which has 145 billion pounds ($235 billion) under management.
A Greek debt default would hurt other peripheral euro zone states and could push Portuguese and Irish debt into junk territory, Moody's said on Tuesday, warning it would classify most forms of restructuring as a default.
The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan fell 0.7 percent while the Nikkei closed down 0.6 percent.
US Treasuries and German Bunds advanced, benefiting fom safe-haven flows. The 10-year Bund yield hovered just above the psychologically significant 3 percent level and could soon breach it given the unresolved debt crisis.
Brent crude for July was up 0.1 percent at $112.63, from as low as $111.14 a barrel earlier in the session, as crude oil jumped in step with the euro rebound. US crude was down 8 cents a barrel at $99.51 a barrel, up from a low of $98.26.
But Brent prices remained stuck below $113 a barrel on concern about weak gasoline demand ahead of the US driving season and a rebounding dollar.
Gold steadied after having rallied to its highest level in three weeks in the previous session, but bullion priced in euros struck a record high on concerns about the impact of a possible debt default by Greece on other euro zone economies.
Spot gold was last bid at $1,526.40 a troy ounce, from $1,525.75 an ounce late in New York on Tuesday when the precious metal hit a three-week high of $1,527.45.
Copyright Reuters, 2011
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.