MELBOURNE, March 21 (Reuters) - Australian shares are likely
to consolidate the recovery seen late last week on Monday as
investors weigh up higher oil prices after U.S. and European air
strikes in Libya and signs of hope at the quake-crippled nuclear
plant in Japan.
* Markets in Japan are closed on Monday for a holiday. Local volumes could be reduced as investors confront the prospect of rising oil prices which may deter interest in riskier assets.
* Share price index futures slipped 0.4 percent to 4,629.0, a 2.6-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index. The benchmark rose 1.6 percent on Friday, the biggest daily gain in 3-1/2 months after an agreement by G7 countries to intervene to weaken a soaring Japanese yen.
* New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index rose 0.2 percent to 3,344.8 in early trade.
* Oil jumped by more than $2 on Monday after western forces at the weekend launched military strikes to disable Libya's air defences, raising the stakes in a civil war that has nearly paralyzed crude exports from the north African nation. U.S. crude for April rose as much as $2.12 to $103.19.
* Miners may lose some steam after big gains on Friday as copper failed to extend gains into a third day, ending lower offshore, as further tightening moves in China, Middle East unrest and Japan's nuclear crisis kept investor risk at a minimum.
* U.S. stocks gained after a week of heightened volatility on Friday, but investors were reluctant to make big bets due to turmoil in the Middle East and Japan's nuclear crisis.
* Lundin Mining's board on Sunday recommended shareholders reject a C$4.8 billion unsolicited bid by Equinox Minerals Ltd, arguing that the offer undervalues the company. See.
* Also in early news, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan said he would not be influenced by politics in deciding whether to back a planned A$7.37 billion ($7.33 billion) bid by Singapore Exchange for Australian bourse operator ASX Ltd . See.
-----------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2155 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1279.2 0.43% 5.480 USD/JPY 80.88 0.11% 0.090
10-YR US TSY YLD 3.2678 -
0.000SPOT GOLD 1419.57 0.00% 0.000 US CRUDE 101.07 0.00% -0.350 DOW JONES 11858.52 0.71% 83.93 ASIA ADRS 135.10 0.75% 1.00
* U.S. stocks gain but investors see volatility ahead
* Oil up $2, Brent near $116, after West pounds Libya
* Gold up as Libya ceasefire fails to calm tension
* Copper ends down on pre-weekend risk reduction
For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on
((Australia/New Zealand bureaux; +61 2 9373 1800/+64 4 471 4234))
DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary & data Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Australia diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead ................................................................ For latest top breaking news across all markets ................................................................ TOP NEWS SUMMARIES ON OTHER SUBJECTS | U.S. Companies | European Companies | | Forex | Global Economy | | Tech.Media,Telecoms | Banking, Financials | | Politics & General | Sports | ................................................................ MAJOR STOCK MARKET REPORTS New York Weekly outlook New York Pan-Europe Weekly outlook Europe London Weekly outlook London Tokyo ................................................................ ASIA STOCK MARKETS Pan-Asia...................... Bangkok...... Karachi........ S/east Asia. Bombay....... Kuala Lumpur... Sydney/NZ... China........ Seoul.......... Taipei...... Hong Kong.... Singapore...... Tokyo........ ................................................................ Access to some items may depend on subscription level. ................................................................ UP-TO-THE-MINUTE HEADLINES Company results Economic indicators Mergers & acquisitions Interest rates LIVE PRICES & DATA World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt HOW TO FIND INFORMATION YOU NEED | | | | | || | | | LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt Australian dollar LME price overview Keywords: MARKETS AUSTRALIA STOCKS (Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra : visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com * BridgeStation: view story .134 For more information on Top News, please visit http://topnews.reuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
* Markets in Japan are closed on Monday for a holiday. Local volumes could be reduced as investors confront the prospect of rising oil prices which may deter interest in riskier assets.
* Share price index futures slipped 0.4 percent to 4,629.0, a 2.6-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index. The benchmark rose 1.6 percent on Friday, the biggest daily gain in 3-1/2 months after an agreement by G7 countries to intervene to weaken a soaring Japanese yen.
* New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index rose 0.2 percent to 3,344.8 in early trade.
* Oil jumped by more than $2 on Monday after western forces at the weekend launched military strikes to disable Libya's air defences, raising the stakes in a civil war that has nearly paralyzed crude exports from the north African nation. U.S. crude for April rose as much as $2.12 to $103.19.
* Miners may lose some steam after big gains on Friday as copper failed to extend gains into a third day, ending lower offshore, as further tightening moves in China, Middle East unrest and Japan's nuclear crisis kept investor risk at a minimum.
* U.S. stocks gained after a week of heightened volatility on Friday, but investors were reluctant to make big bets due to turmoil in the Middle East and Japan's nuclear crisis.
* Lundin Mining's board on Sunday recommended shareholders reject a C$4.8 billion unsolicited bid by Equinox Minerals Ltd, arguing that the offer undervalues the company. See.
* Also in early news, Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan said he would not be influenced by politics in deciding whether to back a planned A$7.37 billion ($7.33 billion) bid by Singapore Exchange for Australian bourse operator ASX Ltd . See.
-----------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2155 GMT ------------
INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1279.2 0.43% 5.480 USD/JPY 80.88 0.11% 0.090
10-YR US TSY YLD 3.2678 -
0.000SPOT GOLD 1419.57 0.00% 0.000 US CRUDE 101.07 0.00% -0.350 DOW JONES 11858.52 0.71% 83.93 ASIA ADRS 135.10 0.75% 1.00
* U.S. stocks gain but investors see volatility ahead
* Oil up $2, Brent near $116, after West pounds Libya
* Gold up as Libya ceasefire fails to calm tension
* Copper ends down on pre-weekend risk reduction
For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on
((Australia/New Zealand bureaux; +61 2 9373 1800/+64 4 471 4234))
DIARIES & DATA: IPO diary & data Asia earnings diary U.S. earnings diary European diary Australia diary Wall Street Week Ahead Eurostocks Week Ahead ................................................................ For latest top breaking news across all markets ................................................................ TOP NEWS SUMMARIES ON OTHER SUBJECTS | U.S. Companies | European Companies | | Forex | Global Economy | | Tech.Media,Telecoms | Banking, Financials | | Politics & General | Sports | ................................................................ MAJOR STOCK MARKET REPORTS New York Weekly outlook New York Pan-Europe Weekly outlook Europe London Weekly outlook London Tokyo ................................................................ ASIA STOCK MARKETS Pan-Asia...................... Bangkok...... Karachi........ S/east Asia. Bombay....... Kuala Lumpur... Sydney/NZ... China........ Seoul.......... Taipei...... Hong Kong.... Singapore...... Tokyo........ ................................................................ Access to some items may depend on subscription level. ................................................................ UP-TO-THE-MINUTE HEADLINES Company results Economic indicators Mergers & acquisitions Interest rates LIVE PRICES & DATA World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt HOW TO FIND INFORMATION YOU NEED | | | | | || | | | LIVE PRICES & DATA: World Stocks Currency rates Dow Jones/NASDAQ Nikkei FTSE 100 Debt Australian dollar LME price overview Keywords: MARKETS AUSTRALIA STOCKS (Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra : visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com * BridgeStation: view story .134 For more information on Top News, please visit http://topnews.reuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.