The euro slid to a three-week low against the dollar at
one point after figures showed Greece's economy shrank more than expected in
the second quarter and euro zone industrial production declined in June.
The euro later firmed a bit while the dollar extended the
previous day's strong gains on the weak US jobs data and the
weaker-than-expected euro zone data spurred safe-haven demand for the
greenback.
A spate of data this week from China showed signs of an
slowdown in its growth, helping pull down Asian stocks.
MSCI's all-country world index of equities fell 0.6
percent, even as major European stocks rebounded a bit from Wednesday's 2
percent decline.
European shares gained on brewer InBev's forecast-beating
profit and a drug approval at GlaxoSmithKline.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares rose
0.2 percent to close at 1,042.77 points.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 44.69 points,
or 0.43 percent, at 10,334.14. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down
4.80 points, or 0.44 percent, at 1,084.67. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down
15.50 points, or 0.70 percent, at 2,193.13.
Oil headed for a third straight session of losses as
prices fell more than 2 percent toward $76 a barrel on heightened doubts about
the outlook for fuel demand from the United States and China.
US crude for September delivery extended losses following
the US jobs report, and was $1.68 lower at $76.34 a barrel by 1636 GMT
following a 3 percent decline on Wednesday, its biggest daily drop in six
weeks.
Brent crude was at $76.36 a barrel, down $1.28.
The dollar was up against a basket of major currencies,
with the US Dollar Index up 0.25 percent at 82.498.
The euro was up 0.16 percent at $1.2853, and against the
Japanese yen, the dollar was up 0.81 percent at 85.89.
In Asia, the MSCI index of Asia Pacific ex-Japan stocks
fell 1.2 percent. The Nikkei average closed 0.9 percent down after sliding to a
13-month low earlier in the session.
Meanwhile, Gold prices were on track to their biggest
one-day rally in more than two months on Thursday as disappointing US economic
data further eroded investor
confidence, prompting a surge of interest in perceived safe-haven assets.
Gold prices hit a four-week high amid a strong dollar and
two days of sharp equity market losses after the Federal Reserve downgraded its
economic outlook and said it needed to buy government debt to boost a flagging
economy.
On Thursday, gold accelerated gains to rise about $10 in
the minutes after data showed the number of US workers filing new claims for
unemployment insurance unexpectedly rose last week to a near six-month high, a
fresh signal of a weak jobs market.
New York precious metals brokers said that buy stops were
triggered after the jobless claims data, and as investors opted to cover their
short positions to avoid losses as prices kept rising.
Gold was at $1,213.45 an ounce by 11:52 a.m. EDT (1552
GMT), against $1,197.00 late in New York on Wednesday, still nearly 5 percent
below late June's lifetime high around $1,264.
Gold for December delivery on COMEX was up $16.10, or 1.3
percent, at $1,215.30 an ounce. It was December's biggest one-day percentage
gain since June 7.
Traders also cited a research note from Goldman Sachs,
which upgraded its forecast for the gold price, as a driver to the rally in the
price on Thursday.
"The recent sell-off has left speculative long
positions in gold oversold relative to U.S. real interest rates, which we
believe has set the stage for a rally to our six-month gold price target of
$1,300/oz," Goldman said.
Although demand from key Asian consumers has been
suppressed by the rise in gold prices over the past week or so, the desire for
a safe haven as financial market volatility increases has translated into a
rise in investment demand.
The world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund,
SPDR Gold Trust, said its holdings rose for the first time in a week.
Silver benefited from gold's rise, and was at $18.01 an
ounce, up from $17.84 the day before.
Spot platinum was at $1,522.50 an ounce, down around 1.5
percent from the levels late in New York on Wednesday, but up from an intraday
low of $1,500.75. Palladium was at $466.75, versus $477.00 Wednesday.
