Asian shares gain, dollar near three-year high on U.S. jobs afterglow

TOKYO | Tue Jul 9, 2013 7:18am BST
(Reuters) - Asian shares gained on Tuesday, taking heart from a rally on Wall Street spurred by strong U.S. job data last week, while the U.S. dollar held near a three-year high against a basket of currencies.

But Chinese shares underperformed on concerns over Beijing's credit reform drive to rebalance the economy and as unexpectedly high inflation data shut out any near-term possibility of monetary support for economic growth.

European shares were expected to open higher, however, with and Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE 100 seen trading up around 0.4 percent.

FTSE100 firmly higher in early deals as the miners improve

GBP Manufacturing Production m/m -0.8% 0.3% -0.2%

GBP Trade Balance -8.5B -8.4B -8.4B

GBP Industrial Production m/m 0.0% 0.3% -0.1%

FTSE100 firmly higher at midday with RBS the leader

GBP NIESR GDP Estimate 0.6% 0.6%

USD JOLTS Job Openings 3.83M 3.81M 3.76M

IMF cuts global growth forecast as emerging markets slow

WASHINGTON | Tue Jul 9, 2013 3:13pm BST
(Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund trimmed its global growth forecast on Tuesday for the fifth time since early last year due to a slowdown in emerging economies and the woes in recession-struck Europe.

In its mid-year health check of the world economy, the Fund also warned global growth could slow further if the pull-back from massive monetary stimulus in the United States triggers reversals in capital flows and crimps growth in developing countries.

IMF raises UK economic growth forecast

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lifted its economic growth forecast for the UK this year from 0.7% to 0.9%.

Not since April 2012 has the IMF raised its UK forecast. A Treasury spokesman said it showed that the economy was moving from "rescue to recovery".

In April this year, the Fund cut its forecast to 0.7% from 1%, sparking wide debate about whether Chancellor George Osborne should alter his policies.

FTSE100 ends with strong gains as the miners advance