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World|business|July 14, 2014 / 12:27 PM
Asian shares rise Monday as investors put aside concerns over euro zone banks

AKIPRESS.COM - Asian shares Asian shares rose on Monday as investors put aside concerns about euro zone banks and looked forward to corporate earnings and a raft of global economic events, including testimony from the head of the Federal Reserve, Reuters noticed.

Thus, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.4 percent, with Seoul putting on 0.3 percent. Japan's Nikkei bounced 0.88 percent after several sessions of losses.

Singapore's main index went flat after the city-state reported a surprise 0.8 percent annualized contraction in economic activity for the second quarter, led by a steep drop in manufacturing.

Financial spreadbetters expected the FTSE 100 to open up 0.1 percent, the DAX 0.3 percent and the CAC 40 0.4 percent.

European markets had calmed on Friday as investors decided that losses associated with the founding family of Banco Espirito Santo were unlikely to disrupt Portugal's financial system or revive broader worries about the bloc's weaker economies.

The S&P 500 EMini contract was trading up 0.2 percent on Monday, after the cash index ended with similar gains on Friday. The Dow closed up 0.17 percent, while the Nasdaq added 0.44 percent.

Attention will be on shares in Citigroup, which sources said it would announce on Monday a deal to pay $7 billion to resolve a U.S. government investigation into shoddy mortgage-backed securities.

Meanwhile, currency markets were quiet on Monday with the dollar index a touch firmer at 80.226, a level it has gravitated towards since recovering from a two-month low of 79.740 on July 1. The euro bought $1.3602, having stuck to a tight range around $1.3600 for over a week now.

Against the yen, the greenback fetched 101.41, holding off a seven-week trough of 101.06 plumbed last Thursday. The euro was near 137.95 yen, recovering from last week's fall to a five-month low of 137.50.

Gold slipped back to $1,328.50 an ounce, and away from a 3-1/2 month high of $1,345 reached last week. Prices for the safe-haven metal had been supported in part by the intensified fighting in Gaza.

On Monday, Brent crude oil was off 2 cents at $106.64 a barrel, not far from a three month-trough of $106.27. U.S. crude shed 42 cents to $100.41 per barrel.

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