Daily Exchange Rate

Currency	Bid	Offer	Time
EUR/USD	1.44089	1.44106	Thu Aug 6 03:39:59 2009
USD/JPY	95.139	95.155	Thu Aug 6 03:39:58 2009
GBP/USD	1.70030	1.70070	Thu Aug 6 03:39:58 2009
USD/CAD	1.06764	1.06824	Thu Aug 6 03:39:52 2009
USD/CHF	1.06117	1.06157	Thu Aug 6 03:39:57 2009
EUR/JPY	137.082	137.115	Thu Aug 6 03:39:58 2009
EUR/GBP	0.84730	0.84750	Thu Aug 6 03:39:58 2009
EUR/CHF	1.52924	1.52954	Thu Aug 6 03:40:00 2009
GBP/CHF	1.80446	1.80521	Thu Aug 6 03:39:58 2009
GBP/JPY	161.759	161.824	Thu Aug 6 03:39:58 2009

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 TOKYO, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Gold inched up on Thursday, drawing
support from the dollar's weakness against the euro and investor
risk appetite that has helped boost assets across markets, but
prices were capped as investors grew wary of high price levels.

 Gold hit a two-month high earlier in the week on the dollar's
drop and a broad rally in commodities and equities, as hopes for
an economic recovery encouraged funds to pour money into a wide
range of assets.

 Traders said investors may become cautious about pushing
prices higher given the elevated market levels, as well as
physical demand remaining weak and gold losing its appeal as a
safe haven as sentiment about the economy improves.

 "We'll see further weakness in the dollar which is very
supportive to the gold market, but in 2009 we have seen gold
struggle to maintain its momentum when it got to the high
$900s-$1,000," said Toby Hassall, an analyst with CWA Global
Markets in Australia.

 "I wouldn't be surprised if the market fails to break above
$1,000," he said.

 Spot gold XAU= was up 0.2 percent at $963.60 per ounce as
of 0250 GMT, compared with New York's notional close of $961.95.

 U.S. gold futures for December delivery GCZ9 eased 0.1
percent to $965.40 an ounce, compared with $966.30 an ounce on
the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

 As optimism about the economy grows, other products such as
silver, copper and oil have become a focus due to their
exposure to industrial use, Hassall said.

 "As things are getting better and money flows into riskier
assets, funds are looking to get exposed to industrial demand.
Gold has been out of focus, with fear moving out of the market as
the volatility index .VIX fell," he said.

 The dollar stayed near its 2009 lows against the euro on
Thursday on hopes a slower pace of U.S. private job losses in
July hinted at a gradual improvement in the economy. [USD/]

 The impact on gold from the U.S. nonfarm payrolls data due on
Friday will depend on how currencies react, traders said. With
the recent markets' rally based on expectations the U.S. economy
is improving, a negative surprise could erode some of the
optimism.

 Gold futures dipped on Wednesday as weaker equities prompted
funds to consolidate recent profits.

 U.S. stocks slipped on Wednesday as the market took the
weaker services sector and private payrolls data as cooling
recent optimism the recession was retreating, but the market
finished off its lows as investors ventured into riskier
financial shares. [.N]

 Asian stocks fell on Thursday, led by a more than 3 percent
drop in Chinese stocks on worries about adjustments to monetary
policy that might impact market liquidity. [ID:nPEK368445]

 Base metals also fell sharply on Thursday after rising to
multimonth peaks in previous sessions.

 Physical demand is generally weak and the fairly high price
of gold in a historic context might limit the market impact from
an expected pick-up in Indian demand this month, traders said.

 Indians have started buying gold jewellery and wholesalers
are stocking up against anticipated price rises as the busy
season gets under way in the world's largest bullion consumer.
India, accounting for over 20 percent of global demand for gold
jewellery in 2008, celebrates several Hindu festivals this month,
when demand for bullion usually picks up. [ID:nSP91056]

 The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the
SPDR Gold Trust GLD, said holdings stood at 1,072.87 tonnes as
of Aug. 5, unchanged from the previous business day. [GOL/SPDR]

 PRICES
 Precious metals prices at 0250 GMT
Metal             Last    Change  Pct chg  YTD pct chg Turnover
Spot Gold         962.55    0.60   +0.06      9.36
Spot Silver        14.60   -0.04   -0.27     28.98
Spot Platinum    1277.50   -5.00   -0.39     37.07
Spot Palladium    273.00    0.00   +0.00     47.97
TOCOM Gold       2950.00   -4.00   -0.14     14.65        24202
TOCOM Platinum   3906.00   33.00   +0.85     47.29        15256
TOCOM Silver      446.90    0.70   +0.16     39.96           84
TOCOM Palladium   842.00  -16.00   -1.86     53.09          182
Euro/Dollar       1.4390
Dollar/Yen         94.97
TOCOM prices in yen per gram, except TOCOM silver which is
priced in yen per 10 grams. Spot prices in $ per ounce.

Forex Exchange Morning Report 5-8-2009

Forex Exchange Morning Report
Risk currencies maintained their firm tone last night thanks to supportive, but mixed, US data. The ADP payroll report produced a small negative surprise, denting equity investor sentiment and the S&P500 at the open, but the later factory orders report easily beat consensus, helping revive risk into the NY close. The S&P500 closed down 0.3%, but noteworthy is the +4.4% performance of the banks' index. Oil was little changed, but copper ground 1.1% higher. US treasuries bounced around with the data, the 10yr note 8bp higher on the day.
EUR ranged wildly between 1.4355 and 1.4445, a disappointing retails sales report hurting, but has rebounded to the upper bound. A raft of strong UK data pushed GBP higher to 1.7043. JPY remained around its recent 95 consolidation zone. We note retail margin traders aggressively cutting JPY shorts. Moody's reaffirmation of Mexico's Baa1 rating boosted the peso 1.3%.
AUD bounced around with the data, seeing overnight extremes of 0.8450 and 0.8360, but is about where it closed in Sydney yesterday at 0.8405.
NZD was relatively stable, perhaps supported by residual sentiment from the earlier milk powder price rise, and remains around 0.6730. That milk result kept the pressure on AUD/NZD overnight, reaching a low of 1.2443.
US ISM non-manufacturing slipped from 47.0 to 46.4 in July. This reflected a near 4 pt drop in the business activity index, a 2 pt drop in jobs and a smaller drop in orders, with offset from inventories and supplier deliveries. Not a surprising outcome to us, as the June jump had looked excessive; the uptrend in this survey is still intact.
US ADP private payrolls down 371k in July. This compared to a 463k fall in June, which suggests that Friday's payrolls report will also show a smaller pace of job loss. However, ADP is not a reliable guide to payrolls, even if, as in June, it seems to get it about right; we expect total payrolls to show an even starker improvement (WBC forecast -270k), given statistical distortions related to auto sector hiring.
US factory orders rise 0.4% in June. A 2.7% jump in non-durables (mostly due to energy prices) offset the known 2.2% drop in the durables component. Factory inventories fell 0.8%.
Euroland retail sales fell 0.2% in June, their sixth decline in seven months, and pointing to a likely further contraction in Q2 household spending.
UK industrial production jumped 0.5% in June, the strongest monthly gain since October 2007, and one of only four monthly gains since then. This result adds weight to the view that the UK economy may have bottomed out sometime in the second quarter.
UK surveys point to improving economy. The Nationwide's July consumer confidence index rose from 59 to 60; the Halifax reported a 1.1% jump house prices last month; and the British Retail Consortium saw only modest further discounting in July, with shop price growth easing from 0.7% yr to 0.5% yr. Most impressive was the rise from 51.6 to 53.2 in the services PMI, pointing to accelerating growth in that sector.
Outlook Today's highlight should be the double billing employment reports from New Zealand and Australia. In New Zealand, a number higher than 5.7% may be dismissed as old data (it would also need to be worse than the RBNZ's 5.9% forecast to have monetary policy implications), but something lower would likely elicit a bullish response in the NZD. We favour the kiwi higher in sessions ahead, to around 0.6900 initially, with temporary corrections limited to 0.6650.
Events Today
Country Release Last Forecast NZ Q2 HLFS Employment –1.1% –0.4% Q2 HLFS Unemployment 5.00% 5.70% Aus Jul Employment chg –21.4k –20k Jul Unemployment Rate 5.80% 6.00% US Initial Jobless Claims w/e 1/8 584k 590k Jul Chain Store Sales %yr –5.1% – Jpn Jun Leading Index 76.9 79.7 Eur ECB Rate Decision 1.00% 1.00% Ger Jun Factory Orders 4.40% –2.2% UK BoE Rate Decision 0.50% 0.50% Can Jun Building Permits 14.80% –3.2% Westpac Institutional Bank
http://www.wib.westpac.co.nz/
All customers please note that this information has been prepared without taking account of your objectives, financial situation or needs. Because of this you should, before acting on this information, consider its appropriateness, having regard to your objectives, financial situation or needs. Australian customers can obtain Westpac's financial services guide by calling +612 9284 8372, visiting www.westpac.com.au or visiting any Westpac Branch. The information may contain material provided directly by third parties, and while such material is published with permission, Westpac accepts no responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any such material. Except where contrary to law, Westpac intends by this notice to exclude liability for the information. The information is subject to change without notice and Westpac is under no obligation to update the information or correct any inaccuracy which may become apparent at a later date. Westpac Banking Corporation is regulated for the conduct of investment business in the United Kingdom by the Financial Services Authority. © 2004 Westpac Banking Corporation. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The forecasts given in this document are predictive in character. Whilst every effort has been taken to ensure that the assumptions on which the forecasts are based are reasonable, the forecasts may be affected by incorrect assumptions or by known or unknown risks and uncertainties. The ultimate outcomes may differ substantially from these forecasts.

Metal prices rise slightly on dollar weakness

Most precious and industrial metals rose Wednesday, building on recent gains as the dollar extended its losses. Gold prices, however, finished slightly lower as investors collected some profits.

Prices were supported by the dollar's ongoing weakness; the greenback fell slightly against the euro and the British pound Wednesday.

Commodities are priced in U.S. dollars, so they become more attractive to foreign investors when the dollar is down.

Commodities traders seemed little fazed by the day's mix of economic data.

A reading indicating weakness in the services sector offset a report showing an unexpected increase in factory orders.

Metals and other commodities have been rallying over the past month, mirroring big gains in the stock market as improving economic data and earnings reports gave investors hope that demand for basic materials will pick up by the end of the year.

But analysts are anticipating that the market will cool off in the near future, and they say it may have gotten ahead of itself considering the economy's slow rate of recovery.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, September silver rose 6.5 cents to $14.76 an ounce, while October platinum added $16.30 to $1,293.10 an ounce.

Over the past week, silver has risen 11.3 percent, while platinum is up 10.3 percent. September copper futures rose 1.65 cents to $2.8120 a pound.

Copper is up 13.5 percent since July 29. Gold for December delivery dipped $3.40 to $966.30 an ounce.

David Beahm, vice president of economic research at Blanchard & Co., a precious metals investment firm, said investors were likely taking some profits off the table in light of gold's recent advance.

Prices have risen nearly 4 percent in just five trading sessions.

Oil prices hovered near $72 a barrel, after dipping below $70 earlier Wednesday.

Prices have climbed from below $63 a barrel last week on the hopes that energy demand would soon rebound amid signs the economy was improving.

Some of the market's recent optimism was tempered Wednesday after the Energy Department said crude inventories rose by nearly 2 million barrels last week.

Light, sweet crude for September delivery rose 55 cents to settle at $71.97 a barrel on the Nymex.

Gasoline futures fell half a cent to settle at $2.0512 a gallon, while heating oil futures rose just more than half a cent to settle at $1.9569 a gallon.

Grain prices were mixed on the Chicago Board of Trade.

September wheat futures fell 13.5 cents to $5.5675 a bushel, and corn for September delivery fell 7.5 cents to $3.47 a bushel.

November soybeans rose 1.35 cents to $1.045 a bushel.

CBI’s dollar sales drop on Wed.

BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Demand for the dollar was lower in the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) auction on Wednesday, reaching $132.780 million compared to $150.250 million during the previous session.

“The demand hit $15 million in cash, covered by the bank at an exchange rate of 1,183 Iraqi dinars, and $117.780 million in foreign transfers outside the country, covered at an exchange rate of 1,173 Iraqi dinars per dollar,” according to a CBI news bulletin received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
None of the 14 banks that participated in today’s session offered to sell dollars.
The Central Bank of Iraq runs a daily auction from Sunday to Thursday.