Japan recovery seen sustained on Abenomics, may justify tax hike

TOKYO | Tue Aug 6, 2013 6:49am BST
(Reuters) - Japan's economy likely grew an annualised 3.6 percent in April-June to mark a third straight quarter of expansion, a Reuters poll showed, adding to growing signs the positive effect of premier Shinzo Abe's reflationary policies is spreading.

The reading will give the government justification to go ahead with a planned sales tax hike next year, although the decision will take longer and involve many other factors given its political sensitivity, analysts say.

Nikkei rebounds on short-covering, yen; Sony tumbles

Tue Aug 6, 2013 7:35am BST
TOKYO, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average rose 1
percent on Tuesday as Reuters story that a Japanese pension fund
might buy more stocks and the yen's retreat sparked
short-covering in a holiday-thin trade.

The benchmark Nikkei gained 143.02 points to
14,401.06, after dropping as low as 14,031.61, while the broader
Topix rose 0.8 percent to 1,193.66 in thin trade, with
2.26 billion shares changing hands.

Sony Corp was one of the notable losers, falling
4.6 percent and was the fourth most traded stock by turnover on
the main board after it rejected proposals from activist
shareholder Daniel Loeb of Third Point to spin off a part of its
entertainment business.

The dollar reversed early declines against the yen after
sources told Reuters that the pension for Japan's civil servants
is considering changing its investment strategy to allow more of
its $80 billion to go into stocks and less into domestic
government bonds.

Halifax HPI m/m 0.9% 0.3% 0.7%

FTSE100 slightly lower in early deals as mining stocks retreat

EUR Italian Industrial Production m/m 0.3% 0.5% 0.1%

UK house prices rise at fastest pace since 2010 - Halifax

(Reuters) - British house prices rose at their fastest annual pace in nearly three years last month, and are likely to increase further in the remainder of 2013, mortgage lender Halifax said on Tuesday.

Halifax said that house prices in the three months to July were 4.6 percent higher than a year earlier, beating economists' forecasts and their fastest pace of growth since August 2010.

Prices rose by 0.9 percent in July alone, gathering pace from a 0.6 percent increase in June.

GBP Manufacturing Production m/m 1.9% 0.9% -0.7%

GBP Industrial Production m/m 1.1% 0.7% 0.0%

EUR Italian Prelim GDP q/q -0.2% -0.4% -0.6%

EUR German Factory Orders m/m 3.8% 1.1% -1.3%

FTSE100 slightly lower at midday, with miners in retreat

CAD Trade Balance -0.5B -0.5B -0.3B

USD Trade Balance -34.2B -43.1B -45.0B

GBP NIESR GDP Estimate 0.7% 0.6%

USD JOLTS Job Openings 3.94M 3.91M 3.83M

USD IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism 45.1 47.9 47.1

FTSE100 ends session modestly lower as the miners weaken