Overnight: US stocks retreated from record levels reached during the previous session but trimmed losses by midday, shrugging off economic reports that mostly...
Overnight: US stocks retreated from record levels reached during the previous session but trimmed losses by midday, shrugging off economic reports that mostly disappointed. Treasury prices slid, with intermediate-maturity debt taking the brunt of the selloff as the market absorbed $45 billion of auction supply in the wake of a Federal Reserve decision to scale down its own bond buying. Gold futures marked their lowest settlement in more than three years. Natural-gas futures climbed more than 4%, ready to close at their highest in over 2 years, after a US govt report showed that weekly supplies dropped much more than the market expected. The UK stock market rallied with the rest of Europe as investors welcomed the US Federal Reserve's decision to start tapering its asset purchases. European stock indexes moved sharply higher. London BHP down 0.70%. Rio up 1.19%. NewYork BHP up 2.82%. Rio down 0.13% LME Base metals traded lower.