MARKETS / FINANCE

Moody's cut Ireland's credit rating on Monday, warning the country faces a slow climb out of recession as the cost of a rescue of its banking sector mounts.

The euro hovered near a two-month high against the dollar on Monday, rebounding from lows hit after a downgrade of Ireland's sovereign ratings, as investors awaited results of European banks' stress tests.

Stocks were poised for a higher open on Monday, signaling the S&P 500 would bounce back from its worst one-day drop since June 29 on Friday, as earnings season kicks into high gear.

Oil prices slipped below $76 a barrel on Monday as investors weighed a sharp drop in U.S. consumer sentiment against early signs of improved oil demand. Analysts said oil prices were moving in a range around $75 per barrel with ample support due to large drawdowns in U.S. crude oil stocks over the past three weeks.

After the Greece economic tragedy, its is the turn of Hungary to help gold prices go up. Following the failure of talks between Hungary government, IMF and the European Commission, the crisis in the European zone deepened and this has helped gold prices to go up. The IMF and the EU gave Hungary multibillion-dollar loans in late 2008 to help it recover from the financial crisis. The international lenders are now re-negotiating with the government.

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Stock index futures climbed on Monday, signaling the S&P 500 could rebound from its worst one-day drop since June 29 on Friday, as earnings season kicks into high gear.

Stock index futures were higher on Monday, indicating the S&P 500 could rebound from its worst one-day drop since June 29 on Friday, as earnings season kicks into high gear.

Gold eased below $1,190 an ounce in Europe on Monday, extending the previous week's 1.5 percent fall, due to lower investment demand for the precious metal as appetite for other assets improved. Spot gold was bid at $1,189.55 an ounce at 1112 GMT, against $1,193.10 late in New York on Friday. U.S. gold futures for August delivery rose $2.00 an ounce to $1,190.20.

In a bid to encourage gold trading and build collaborative relationships for developing gold market in Saudi Arabia, the top leadership of the World Gold Council (WGC) will make its visit to the Kingdom state this week.

With the festival season nearing and the gold prices slightly falling, gold traders have returned to the bullion market and started stocking up the metal for the coming festival demand. Good fall in prices has led to good demand. There were deals at all levels from $1,200/1,190/1,186 (an ounce).

China's main state-run television station has accused the country's top internet search engine Baidu Inc of directing users to websites that sell counterfeit drugs, the People's Daily reported on Monday.

Wall Street was set for a bounce on Monday, following a sharp fall in the previous session, when disappointing revenue from bellwethers reporting results, and downbeat consumer sentiment data, hurt equities.

American International Group named former Prudential plc chief executive and experienced Asia hand Mark Tucker as the head of its Asian life insurance business, AIA, ahead of an expected $15 billion AIA IPO.

Bailed-out insurer American International Group Inc named former Prudential plc Chief Executive Mark Tucker as head of its Asia life insurance business, AIA, and said it would seek to list AIA on the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Wall Street was set for a bounce on Monday, following a sharp fall in the previous session, when disappointing revenue from bellwethers reporting results, and downbeat consumer sentiment data, hurt equities.

Decades of sanctions against Iran have stunted its economic development and the growth of its all-important oil sector. The international community, led by the United States, has made sanctions more and more stringent as Iran has refused to abandon its nuclear programme.

Gold eased in Asia on Monday after see-sawing most of the day as selling on low inflation signals gave way to safe-haven buying on concern over Hungary's debt crisis and a cut to Ireland's sovereign rating. But by late afternoon, bearish sentiment had again gripped the sector, sending bullion down by more than $2 an ounce.

The euro stayed below two-month highs versus the dollar on Monday, dented by a downgrade of Ireland and the suspension of talks between Hungary and the IMF, but recovered as traders awaited results of bank stress tests. Moody's Investors Service downgraded Ireland's sovereign bond rating to Aa2 with a stable outlook from Aa1.

Private equity firms TPG and Carlyle won a bidding war for Australian hospital owner Healthscope Ltd , agreeing to pay $1.73 billion in the country's largest buyout deal since 2007.

Moody's downgraded Ireland's sovereign bond rating by one notch to Aa2 on Monday, citing weaker growth prospects and the high costs of rebuilding the country's crisis-hit banking system.

Middle Eastern buyers were ready to place some of the largest orders at Farnborough as the global aviation industry's biggest airshow opened in the sleepy southern England town on Monday.

The global aviation industry descended en masse on this sleepy southern England town on Monday for its largest airshow, with Middle Eastern buyers poised to make another massive splash.

Global stocks slipped on Monday and investors briefly shunned the euro after Moody's cut the credit rating of Ireland, slightly unsettling markets already worried about a slowdown in the pace of U.S. economic recovery.

Oil prices steadied near $76 a barrel on Monday, pausing from the previous session's decline, as investors weighed the sharp drop in U.S. consumer sentiment against early signs of improved underlying oil demand. Analysts said the marginal slide in oil prices shows that crude was receiving ample support above $74 a barrel, thanks to bullish inventory reports that showed large drawdowns in U.S. crude stocks over the past three weeks.

The euro stayed below two-month highs versus the dollar on Monday, dented by a downgrade of Ireland and the suspension of talks between Hungary and the IMF, but steadied as traders awaited results of bank stress tests. Moody's Investors Service downgraded Ireland's sovereign bond ratings rating to Aa2 with a stable outlook from Aa1.

An unexpectedly sharp drop in a key consumer confidence index sent stocks plummeting on Friday and drove down prices for crude oil futures so that the benchmark contract finished the week virtually unchanged from last Friday.

The euro extended losses on Monday, pulling further away from two-month highs, after Moody's cut Ireland's credit rating, highlighting the fragility of Europe's fiscal health.

Europe may be hoping its long-awaited bank stress tests are anti-climactic, judging from the confident comments coming from officials. Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the euro zone finance ministers, doesn't expect any big catastrophes when results from the tests of 91 European banks are released on Friday.