Share

Asia markets up as Europe leaders struggle for Greece deal

Hong Kong - Asian markets rose on Monday while the euro was marginally lower as European leaders struggle to hammer out a debt reform deal to keep Greece in the eurozone, with a source saying a compromise had finally been found.

Shanghai continued its recovery from weeks of wild volatility as several firms returned to trading, while China released mixed data showing a pick-up in export growth but two-way trade sinking in the first half of the year.

Tokyo was up 1.50% in the afternoon, Sydney gained 0.64% and Seoul put on 1.25%.

By lunch, Shanghai had climbed 2.28% and Hong Kong added 0.22%.

Germany and other eurozone leaders handed Greece a brutal ultimatum for desperately needed bailout cash on Sunday, with Chancellor Angela Merkel pushing for a temporary euro exit - or "time out" - if it does not agree.

A European source told AFP that Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and EU president Donald Tusk hammered out the proposal on the sidelines of an emergency summit of the 19 eurozone countries.

"There is a four-way deal, which will now be put to the 19," said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Tusk's spokesperson Preben Aamann said on Twitter that the EU leader had reconvened the full summit after a break of several hours "with (a) compromise proposal", but gave no further details.

However, a Greek official said there were still issues to be resolved.

Athens had earlier said the proposals put forward by Merkel on Sunday were "very bad", but with its lenders on the brink it looked to have little choice but to bow to reform demands.

In Japanese trade, the euro dipped but managed to stave off heavy losses as the talks continued in Brussels.

It eased to $1.1136 from $1.1149 in New York late on Friday. In earlier electronic trading, the single currency fell as low as $1.1089. It was also at 136.40 yen compared with 136.58 yen in US trade.

"Market reaction in the euro is surprisingly muted," said Steven Englander, global head of Group-of-10 currency strategy at Citigroup.

"The absence of agreement and toughness of terms are eye-catching, but investors are waiting for the outcome more than trying to anticipate it."

Shanghai recovery

Shanghai extending a rebound at the end of last week that came after weeks of extreme volatility, with investors settled by government moves last week to prevent a market crash.

While Greece's future in the eurozone hangs in the balance, attention is also on China.

China's stock market rose in the previous two sessions, but dealers remain nervous after a month of massive selling that has seen the Shanghai Composite index fall about 30%, wiping trillions of dollars off valuations.

About 400 firms began trading again on Monday in Shanghai after almost half the market was suspended last week to prevent a further meltdown.

Investors welcomed an upbeat trade report that showed exports increased more than expected in June.

"Imports improved significantly in June because of lower import duties," said Liu Xuezhi, an economist with Bank of Communications in Shanghai, told Bloomberg News. "Exports are expected to maintain modest growth in coming months to help the economy."

However, Monday's figures also showed two-way trade sank almost seven percent in the first half of the year, well off the government's target of growth of "about 6%" for all of 2015.

Despite the uptick in Shanghai, Sam Tuck, a senior currency strategist in Auckland at ANZ Bank New Zealand, warned: "It's positive that the authorities didn't feel the need to do anything over the weekend but markets are still clearly nervous and we need to see most of the stock market open.

"There's still lots of halts."

The sell-off spread to other regional markets on fears for the world's number two economy and key driver of global growth.

On oil markets, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in August fell 78 cents to $51.96 and Brent dropped $1.01 to $57.72.

Gold fetched $1,161.85 compared with $1,163.50 late Friday.


We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.0%
Rand - Pound
23.90
-0.0%
Rand - Euro
20.41
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.32
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.0%
Platinum
908.05
+1.2%
Palladium
1,014.94
+1.3%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders