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U.S. Stocks Declined over North Korea Tensions, Tech Selloff

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Wall Street dropped on Monday, as a selloff in technology shares weighed on the Nasdaq, while North Korea's recent warnings to Washington contributed to a cautious tone.

The CBOE Volatility index, a broadly followed measure of market anxiety, notched a 2-week peak of 11.21 and last stood 1.12 points higher at 10.71.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.24 percent at 22,296.09. McDonald's, Visa and Boeing were the worst performers on the index, followed by Apple. Home Depot, Exxon Mobil and Walt Disney outperformed.

Information technology had its worst day since August 17, declining 1.4 percent as the largest loser in the S&P 500, which fell 0.22 percent to 2,496.66. Energy led six sectors up and finished almost 1.5 percent.

The Nasdaq composite briefly dropped over one percent but finished 0.99 percent lower at 6,370.59 in its worst day since September 5.

Tech names like Facebook, was down 4.81 percent, Microsoft, dropped 1.89 percent, while Apple, lost 1.11 percent. Other tech-related stocks also fell. Amazon.com declined 1.6 percent and Netflix tumbled 4.7 percent.

Shares of Apple dropped for the fourth consecutive day. The stock declined five percent the previous week, its worst week in over a year, following the launch of the iPhone 8 and some other products in stores. The stock remains almost 30 percent higher for 2017.

Social media giant Facebook fell 4.5 percent in their worst day of the year. It dropped a proposal to issue a new class of shares that will allow CEO Mark Zuckerberg to maintain voting control and fund the firm's philanthropic efforts.

The declines in tech were counterbalanced partly by a sharp rise in the energy sector, which climbed 1.5 percent. The sector was poised for its sixteenth advance in the previous 18 sessions.

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ARGENTINA: Merval Breaks New Record Boosted By YPF

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Merval, the main index of the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange, increased 0.33%, cutting back the gains obtained as soon as it opened, after the government announced that it would lift price control on fuels but rising enough to settle at 25,131.53 points Tuesday and break a new closing record high.

The state-owned oil company YPF was the most benefited by the government announcement climbing 6.26%.

Meanwhile, Central Puerto closed with a 4.95% increase after being granted two electricity generation projects, one in the province of Mendoza, for 89 MW and the other in the province of Santa Fe, for 317 MW.

The shares of Galicia (+2.08%) and Edenor (+1.98%) also rose, while Transener (-2.58%), Autopistas del Sol (-2.58%), and Costanera (-2.49%) fell.

The locally traded U.S. dollar rose 0.31%, closing at 17.58 Argentinean pesos, demanded for covering positions due to the end of the month.

"The foreign exchange market once again saw a rise in the US dollar traded with much lower volume - it was down 28% from yesterday - although it continued to be demanded by banks and companies," said Fernando Izzo, an analyst at ABC Mercado de Cambios.

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Wall Street Mixed after Yellen’s Statements

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U.S. equities finished narrowly mixed on Tuesday as technology stocks recuperated following its recent losses.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen supported the central bank's plan to hike interest rates gradually, raising the prospects of a December rate increase. Yellen said it would be imprudent to leave rates on hold until inflation hit the two percent target and that she saw “considerable” odds that inflation won't stabilize at that level over the next few years.

Growing tensions between the United States and North Korea also added pressure on market sentiment.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.05 percent to 22,284.32 in its first losing streak since June 23. McDonald's added the most pressure on the index, while Apple outperformed.

Information technology rose 0.4 percent to lead three S&P 500 gainers, as telecommunications lagged behind the most. The benchmark index climbed 0.01 percent to 2,496.84. Seven of the 11 major S&P sectors were down, with telecom services index's 0.35 percent leading the losses.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite outperformed, shrugging off an almost one percent drop in the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF and advanced 0.15 percent to 6,380.16.

Shares of Apple climbed 1.3 percent, marking its first gain following four sessions of declines and boosting three major indexes, after Raymond James improved its price target.

Red Hat was up 3.70 percent after the Linux distributor's quarterly profit came in above estimates and the software firm raised its full-year forecast.

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Wall Street Climbs after Release of GOP Tax Plan, Banks Rise

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U.S. equities advanced on Wednesday following the release of the GOP's tax plan framework and as investors paid attention to higher interest rates.

The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 0.25 percent, after marking its first four-day losing streak since June on Tuesday. Goldman Sachs was the best performer on the index.

The S&P 500 notched an all time-peak of 2,511.75, but did not set a record finish. The index closed 0.41 percent higher to 2,507.04. The Nasdaq composite outperformed by gaining 1.15 percent to 6,453.26, its best day since Aug 22.

Financial stocks rose 1.3 percent while information technology stocks climbed over one percent, the best performers on the S&P 500. Utilities, real estate investment trusts and consumer staples led losses on the index.

The GOP framework on tax reform would trim the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, as many anticipated. It also proposes to create just three individual tax rates and double the standard deduction.

The Russell 2000 index of small-cap stocks climbed 1.92 percent and hit its best day since early March. Small-cap names are likely to be the biggest beneficiaries of a tax cut.

Nike pared gains on the Dow and S&P as shares of the athletic wear company lost 1.92 percent after it reported its slowest quarterly sales growth in almost seven years and said it sees a further decline in revenue from North America. However, Nike did report a nine percent increase in Greater China sales.

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South Korea Inflation Eases More Than Forecast

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South Korea's consumer price inflation eased more-than-expected in September, figures from Statistics Korea showed Thursday.

The consumer price index climbed 2.1 percent year-over-year in September, slower than August's 2.6 percent rise. Economists had expected the inflation to ease to 2.2 percent.

Excluding food and energy, core inflation remained stable at 1.4 percent in September.

Prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages grew 3.3 percent annually in September and transport costs went up by 2.7 percent.

On a monthly basis, consumer prices edged up 0.1 percent from August, when it increased by 0.6 percent. The expected rate of increase was 0.2 percent.

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South Korea Has $6.06 Billion Current Account Surplus In August

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South Korea saw a current account surplus of $6.06 billion in August, the Bank of Korea said on Friday - down from $7.26 billion in July.

The goods account surplus widened to $9.31 billion, compared to $6.94 billion in August of last year.

The services account saw a deficit of $2.33 billion, higher than the $1.50 billion figure in August 2016 due to deteriorations in the transport and the travel accounts, the bank said.

The primary income account reversed from its $0.53 billion surplus in August of last year to a deficit of $0.08 billion this year, in line with an increase in the payments on equity account.

The secondary income account showed a $0.84 billion deficit.

In the financial account there was an overall $9.13 billion increase in net assets in August.

Direct investment assets grew by $2.99 billion, and direct investment liabilities by $1.41 billion.

There was a $5.13 billion expansion in portfolio investment assets during the month, and a $6.33 billion decline in portfolio investment liabilities.

Financial derivatives posted a net contraction of $0.70 billion.

In terms of other investment, there was a decrease of $1.65 billion in assets and an increase of $2.54 billion in liabilities.

Reserve assets grew by $0.35 billion.

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U.S. Stocks Climb on Health Care, Tax Plan Hopes

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Wall Street rose on Thursday, with the S&P 500 on track to end at a record due to advances in McDonald's and healthcare firms. Investors are counting on U.S. President Donald Trump to make progress on tax reforms.

The Dow Jones industrial average climbed 0.18 percent to 22,381.20 while the small-cap Russell 2000 index notched an all-time peak after the release of the GOP's highly anticipated tax reform plan.

The S&P 500 rose 0.12 percent to 2,510.06, coming within 0.1 percent of its all-time peak but dropping to reach an intraday record. The Nasdaq composite added 0.19 points to 6,453.45, within 0.4 percent of its record.

Financial stocks climbed, with the SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE) marking its first 10-day win streak on record.

Materials and real estate stocks led S&P 500 gainers. Only the industrials and consumer discretionary stock sectors finished lower, by less than 0.1 percent each. The healthcare index led S&P advancers, climbing by a third of a percent.

McDonald's climbed over two percent as the largest contributor to advances in the Dow after Longbow Research increased its rating for the restaurant chain to purchase from neutral on expectations McDonald's sales will exceed Wall Street estimates.

AbbVie was the largest boost to the S&P, gaining over 5.6 percent after announcing a global resolution of intellectual property-related litigation with Amgen.

Major technology-related stocks steadied after huge losses earlier in the week. Apple and Netflix fell less than one percent, while Facebook and Amazon.com each ended around 0.6 percent higher.

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Philippines Manufacturing PMI Climbs To 50.8 In September - Nikkei

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The manufacturing sector in the Philippines continued to expand in September, and at a faster pace, the latest survey from Nikkei revealed on Monday with a manufacturing PMI score of 50.8.

That's up from 50.6 in August, and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Individually, orders remained modest, while output expansion slowed further.

Cost pressures intensified.

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Gold Prices Tumble to Lowest in Almost 7 Weeks amid Firm Dollar

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Gold prices fell to its weakest in almost seven weeks early on Monday, as the U.S. dollar climbed while equities advanced, amid rising expectations that the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates in December.

Spot gold fell 0.2 percent at $1,276.47 per ounce, after previously hitting its lowest since mid-August at $1,273.90. The precious metal marked its largest monthly drop so far this year in September.

U.S. gold futures for December delivery declined 0.5 percent to $1,278.90 an ounce.

Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said that he still has "pencilled in" an interest rate hike by the end of the year, and three more rate hikes in 2018, in line with most of his colleagues at the central bank.

The dollar was up 0.1 percent versus a basket of major currencies and rose 0.2 percent against the Japanese yen.

U.S. President Donald Trump recently brushed off the prospect of talks with North Korea as a waste of time, a day after his own secretary of state said the United States was maintaining open lines of communication with Pyongyang's leader Kim Jong Un.

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U.S. Yields Slightly Advance after Strong Manufacturing Data

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U.S. Treasury rose as investors weighed in a strong reading by a U.S. manufacturing activity gauge and geopolitical issues, such as the Catalonian independence vote and the most violent shooting in recent U.S. history.

Treasury yields slightly fell from their intraday peaks hit after a survey of Japanese firms showed optimism among the country's top manufacturers was at a record-high, indicating global growth continued to gather momentum from Japan. Historically, the nation has had difficulty curing deflation and rebooting its stagnant economy.

Across the board, U.S. government bond climbed by around a basis point. The 10-year Treasury yield advanced to 2.337 percent, while the two-year note yield advanced to 1.487 percent. Meanwhile, the 30-year bond yield rose up to 2.866 percent.

One of the factors moving the markets is a Las Vegas mass shooting on Sunday, which left a minimum death toll of 58 people and over 500 injured individuals. Another is a disputed referendum on independence held by a region of Spain, Catalonia. The vote resulted in violent incidents as Madrid attempted to bar the referendum from occurring.

However, earlier in the session, Treasuries had initially traded higher after the Bank of Japan's Tankan survey showed that sentiment among big manufacturers reached a decade-long high, up to 22. The surge in the reading is seen to give policymakers the confidence to continue loosening its monetary policy. But the data in focus was the ISM manufacturing index for September, which clocked in at 60.8 percent, its highest reading since 2004. The figures surpassed estimates.

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Singapore Private Sector Accelerates In September - Nikkei

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The private sector in Singapore continued to expand in September, and at a faster pace, the latest survey from Nikkei revealed on Wednesday with a PMI score of 53.7.

That's up from 53.2 in August, and it moves further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Individually, there were faster rises in both new orders and output, while export growth hit a record high.

Backlogs rose again despite additional staff numbers.

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Trump’s Tax Overhaul Plan Hit with New Criticism

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President Donald Trump's plan to revamp the U.S. tax code came under fire once more on Tuesday from two renowned Wall Street figures, including Warren Buffet who raised the Republican push to reduce the U.S. corporate rate.

Buffett and BlackRock Inc. CEO Larry Fink both indicated in separate interviews that the corporate rate may not have to be reduced as deeply as proposed by the White House and top Republicans in Congress.

In an interview with CNBC, the chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said the corporate tax rate did not affect the competitiveness of U.S. businesses.

Meanwhile, Fink said a corporate rate as high as 27 percent could still give U.S. businesses' some breathing room, while preventing the widening in the federal budget deficit. During an interview on Bloomberg TV, Fink said that the current proposal will mean a big expansion of the country's deficits.

The Republican tax plan outlined last month calls for reducing the corporate income tax rate to 20 percent from the current level of 35 percent, which majority of multinational firms are avoiding by taking advantage of loopholes in the tax code.

Buffett added that the planned elimination of the estate tax under the Republican's plan is a 'terrible mistake'. Given that it only impacts a small percentage of Americans, scrapping the tax would not have widespread effects, he said.

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COLOMBIA: Colcap Falls 0.26% Amid Profit-taking And Oil Decrease Abroad

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Colcap, the main index of the Colombian Stock Exchange, fell 0.26% Wednesday, closing at 1,484.12 points with the most of the shares in red.

Andr?s Fonseca, an analyst at Alianza Valores, said that the profit-taking on Bancolombia's shares moves ahead amid a continued selling trend after the FTSE index rebalance.

Meanwhile, the decline in oil prices pushed Ecopetrol shares down 0.36%.

Avianca dropped after the Colombian Association of Civil Aviators (Acdac) rejected a resolution issued by the Civil Aeronautics of Colombia to allow the air company to hire foreign pilots to cover the gap a strike by its pilots.

The shares of ?xito (+0,90%), Nutresa (+0.67%), Cemargos (+0,40%), Grupo Aval (+0.38%), and Cesia (+0.22%) rose, while Preferencial Bancolombia (-1.75%), Bancolombia (-1.10%), ETB (-0.97%), and Ecopetrol (-0.36%) fell.

The locally traded U.S. dollar closed the day at 2,935.30 Colombian pesos, marking a 0.67% fall, amid the uncertainty related to the shortlist released by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to nominate a replacement for the current U.S. Federal Reserve bank chairwoman Janet Yellen.

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Yellen Says Fed Working to Properly Adjust Bank Regulations

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Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen expressed her support for ensuring that financial regulations are not excessively oppressive for banks.

Speaking at a conference at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Yellen said the Fed has been working hard to ensure that the U.S. central bank's regulation and supervision of banks are customized appropriately to the size, complexity, and roles varying institutions have in the financial system.

The Fed chief's comments were mostly in line with her prior remarks that the Fed is putting into consideration the option of easing some of the regulatory burden on lenders, particularly the smaller banks.

Yellen did not comment regarding her plans during the event. She did not also mention anything regarding the path of monetary policy or the economic outlook.

But she underlined the recent move by the Fed to reduce cut red tape by simplifying several regulatory requirements. She told the conference that the Fed have been focused on ensuring that the much-required improvements to regulation and supervision since the crisis are needed and not 'unduly burdensome' for community banks.

Yellen's remarks comes amid speculation in the market who will be her successor as the chair of the Fed when her term expires in early February.

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Hong Kong Private Sector Expands In September - Nikkei

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The private sector turned to expansion in September, the latest survey from Nikkei revealed on Friday with a PMI score of 51.2.

That's up from 49.7 in August, and it moves above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

Individually, the index was boosted by renewed growth in new orders and output, although firms remain pessimistic about business outlook.

Supply shortages helped to drive up input costs.

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Gold Steady Ahead of U.S. Payrolls Data

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Gold prices were steady on Friday ahead of the release of the U.S. jobs data later in the day, with prices being restrained from moving upwards as the dollar stood near a seven-week peak.

Spot gold was flat at $1,268.52 per ounce. It fell 0.5 percent the session earlier.

U.S. gold futures for December delivery dropped 0.2 percent at $1,270.90 an ounce.

The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits dropped more than expected last week, but the sustained impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma on the data made it difficult to get a definite picture of the labour market.

According to Kansas City Fed President Esther George, the Federal Reserve will need to hike U.S. interest rates further in order to keep the economy on course to full employment and the central bank's two percent inflation goal.

Expectations of monetary tightening were also backed by Philadelphia Fed Bank President Patrick Harker saying he was still expecting one more rate hike this year and three next year.

UBS trimmed its average forecast for the precious metal for this year to $1,270 from $1,300 taking into account the likelihood of a December rate hike weighing on the market, metals strategist Joni Teves said.

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New Zealand Dollar Tumbles to 4-Month Low amid Government Discussions

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The New Zealand dollar plunged to a four-month low following the release of a final vote count for the nation's general election, which failed to name the winner.

The small nationalist New Zealand First Party continues to be main power after the final count revealed that the governing National Party lost some ground against the center-left Labour-Green bloc, compared with the preliminary tally announced on the Sept. 23 poll day.

The New Zealand currency dropped to $0.7060 when markets opened on Monday, its weakest since early June from $0.7090 on Friday evening. It stood at $0.7066 during midday.

NZ First continued negotiations on Monday with both the Labour and National, as it awaits its self-imposed deadline of Oct. 12 to announce which party it would support.

According to Imre Speizer, head of NZ strategy at Westpac, “it remains unclear which way NZ First will swing, and when it will announce its intentions”. As a result, “the election-related uncertainty hanging over NZD markets is likely to persist until the composition of the government is announced.”

Con Williams, economist at ANZ Bank, says “the downward bias for the NZD will likely continue following the tallying of the final vote count”.

The Labour and New Zealand First hopes to hold down immigration, renegotiate particular trade deals and adjust the role of the central bank.

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China Private Sector Growth At 3-Month Low

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China's private sector expanded at the weakest pace in three months in September, survey data from IHS Markit showed Monday.

The Caixin composite output index fell to 51.4 in September from 52.4 in August. However, any reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.

The slowdown was driven by weaker increases in output at both manufacturing and services companies.

The seasonally adjusted General Services Business activity index declined to 50.6 in September from 52.7 in August.

Moreover, this signaled a marginal increase in services activity that was the slowest for 21 months.

At the same time, growth in manufacturing production edged down to a three-month low.

"The expansion in both manufacturing and services cooled in September, suggesting downward pressure on economic growth may re-emerge in the fourth quarter," Dr. Zhengsheng Zhong, Director of Macroeconomic Analysis at CEBM Group said.

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Philippine Trade Deficit Widens In August

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Philippine foreign trade deficit increased in August from a year ago, as imports grew faster than exports, preliminary figures from the Philippine Statistical Authority showed Tuesday.

The trade deficit climbed to $2.41 billion in August from $2.13 billion in the corresponding month last year. In July, the shortfall was $1.62 billion.

Exports grew 9.3 percent year-over-year in August and imports advanced by 10.5 percent.

Shipments of electronic products, accounting for 51.9 percent of total exports, rose by 3.5 percent.

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Gold Prices Climb but Strong Dollar Pares Gains

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Gold prices rose to their highest in over a week on Tuesday, but the gains were limited as the dollar held firm, supported by expectations of another Federal Reserve interest rate increase in 2017.

Spot gold climbed 0.2 percent to $1,286.42 per ounce, notching its highest since Sept. 29.

U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 0.3 percent to $1,288.90 an ounce.

The precious metal's prices rebounded after declining for a fourth consecutive week to a two-month low on Friday, after the release of a solid reading of U.S. wage growth and unemployment, which pushed the greenback and Treasury yields higher.

Latest data showed that speculators trimmed their bullish stance in COMEX gold and silver contracts for the third consecutive week, in the week to Oct. 3.

"For the time being, gold may have bottomed out," ABN Amro analyst Georgette Boele said. Expectations for a Fed rate hike, Boele said, are still adding pressure on gold, which, as a non-yielding asset, tends to suffer as interest rates increase.

China's central bank held off from adding to gold reserves for an 11th straight consecutive month in September, recent data revealed.

The dollar was steady on Tuesday after pulling back from a 10-week peak overnight, bolstered by underlying expectations that improved prospects for the U.S. economy would compel the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates by December.

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