* MSCI Asia ex-Japan down 0.3 pct to four-week low, Nikkei
opens down 0.2 pct
* Euro slips but in recent ranges, dollar/yen firm
* Aussie hits fresh six-week low vs USD on China growth
worries
By Chikako Mogi
TOKYO, Sept 5 (Reuters) – Asian shares and the euro eased on
Wednesday, with investors waiting for a European Central Bank
meeting on Thursday and U.S. payrolls on Friday for signs of
more action to counter European debt woes and support growth.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
fell 0.3 percent to a fresh four-week low and
Japan’s Nikkei stock average opened down 0.2 percent.
“I don’t recall anyone having had good economic indicators
lately. Everyone knows the global economy is in a trough. The
policies that will be announced to tackle the problems will be
much more important,” said Lee Seung-woo, an analyst at KDB
Daewoo Securities in Seoul.
European shares fell and U.S. stocks closed mixed while the
euro slid on Tuesday.
U.S. Treasuries gave back some of Friday’s gains, while
two-year yields on Spanish and Italian government bonds fell.
An Institute for Supply Management survey on Tuesday showed
U.S. manufacturing shrank at its sharpest clip in more than
three years last month, the latest sign that the slowing global
economy is weighing on the fragile U.S. recovery.
But U.S. automakers turned in their best August since before
the 2007-09 recession, with monthly auto sales rising 20 percent
from a year ago as consumers showed more confidence in buying
big-ticket items on easier credit terms.
“Consumers will likely continue to respond to low interest
rates and help support that part of the manufacturing sector,”
Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak &
Co. LLC, said in a note. “The weakness in US manufacturing seems
to be sitting squarely on the shoulders of events outside of the
control of US policy makers.”
The euro slipped 0.3 percent but traded within recent ranges
at $1.2530, while the dollar inched up 0.1 percent
against the yen to 78.45 yen.
Market expectations for additional monetary stimulus from
the U.S. Federal Reserve gained momentum after Fed Chairman Ben
Bernanke last week kept the door open for further easing, saying
the Fed was ready to act if needed. His comments weakened the
dollar and pushed down U.S. Treasury yields on Friday.
“It’s no surprise that manufacturing is sluggish everywhere
these days, and the ISM was used as an excuse before the key
events to adjust positions,” such as taking profits from U.S.
Treasuries or buying the dollar back, said Yuji Saito, director
of foreign exchange at Credit Agricole in Tokyo.
He said the dollar may stay firm against the yen with some
traders eyeing to trigger stops around 78.55-78.60 yen, but the
upside was capped near 78.70-78.80 yen with offers lined up.
“The Fed is likely to ease further this month but exactly
what options it will take will depend on data. So until we see
the jobs report, we can’t push markets either way,” Saito said.
Friday’s jobs data will likely show U.S. employers increased
payrolls by 125,000 workers in August, down from July’s 163,000,
while the unemployment rate is seen steady at 8.3 percent. An
elevated unemployment rate is a major drag on the economy. The
Fed holds its meeting on Sept. 12-13.
For the ECB, markets expect the bank to outline its
bond-buying scheme aimed at driving down the yields of highly
indebt countries such as Spain to reduce the cost of their
financing.
Some expect the ECB may offer some details such as
identifying maturities of bonds it intends to buy, most likely
two to three years.
The Australian dollar hit a fresh six-week low
around $1.0198 and hovered near a nine-week low against the euro
as the resource-rich country takes a hit from the
slowdown in the economy of China, the world’s second-largest and
Australia’s largest export market.
Falling prices of its key exports such as iron ore due to
slackening Chinese demand have forced Australian miners to cut
capital spending as well as their expansion plans.
Growing expectations for more accommodative monetary policy
boosted the appeal of gold as a hedge against future inflation
risks.
Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,692.21 an ounce
after touching is highest since mid-March of $1,698.45 an ounce
on Tuesday. Data showed hefty inflows into exchange-traded funds
in August, taking holdings to record highs..
