China shares rise on market hopes

China's main share index has risen nearly 5% after a senior official said regulators would seek to promote steady development of the stock market. The comments from Liu Xinhua, vice chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CRSC), sparked hopes of government policy support. The Shanghai Composite Index closed up 4.8% at 2,845.02, with metal stocks leading the way up.

Shandong Gold rose 10% after gold prices hit a three-month high. Mr Liu said the outlook for the world economy was still unclear, while China's recovery was neither stable nor balanced. "However, the CSRC will try hard to maintain the continuous, stable and healthy development of the securities market," he said.

Separately, on Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said China had agreed to buy $50bn (£31bn) of its first bond issue. The move will strengthen the IMF's lending ability as it tries to raise money to finance lending to help economies get through the global downturn. The agreement also offers China "a safe investment instrument", the IMF said.

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Stock futures higher after jobs data, retail sales

NEW YORK — Stocks are looking to break a four-day losing streak Thursday after the latest reading on the jobs market and mixed retail sales reports. Stock futures had been rising in early trading, following overseas markets higher, and held on to most of their gains after the Labor Department said the number of people filing for unemployment claims fell last week by 4,000 to 570,000.

However, the market had been expecting a bigger drop to 560,000. The number of people continuing to receive benefits rose. The report comes one day before the government's tally on August job losses — the month's most telling piece of economic data. In July, job losses slowed and the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell. Investors are eager to see those trends continue. The market is also sifting through a number of sales reports from retailers.

Early reports have been mixed. The rise in stock futures comes after four days of losses in the stock market, driven by concerns that the economy is not healing fast enough, and that a six-month run-up in stocks had gone too far. Reports on housing and manufacturing have shown improvement, but unemployment, and the resulting clampdown on consumer spending, has left investors wary.

Ahead of the market's open, Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 39, or 0.4 percent, to 9,316, after being up about 67 points prior to the jobs data. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 6, or 0.6 percent, to 1,000.20, while Nasdaq 100 index futures rose 9, or 0.6 percent, to 1,602.

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Sensex slips into the red at 15:19 hrs

Following a bout of selling in some blue chip stocks, the market has slipped into the red now. Oil, pharma, auto and capital goods stocks have declined sharply. Realty, power and bank stocks are also seen drifting lower. Select information technology, metal and consumer durables stocks are trading higher. Several midcap and smallcap stocks have come off their highs and a few of them have even slipped into the red on selling pressure.

The Sensex is down by 58.36 points or 0.38% at 15,409.10 now. The Nifty has lost 17.15 points or 0.37% at 4591.20. HCL Technologies, Ranbaxy Laboratories, Reliance Industries and Bharti Airtel have lost 2% - 2.5%. Tata Motors, Cipla, Mahindra & Mahindra, Siemens, ONGC, Larsen & Toubro, ACC, Wipro, Tata Communications and Power Grid Corporation are also down with sharp losses.

Reliance Communications rules firm with a strong gain of 5.5%. GAIL India, BPCL, Suzlon Energy, Ambuja Cements, Sterlite Industries, Infosys Technologies, Tata Steel, Sun Pharmaceuticals and State Bank of India are also trading in the positive territory with notable gains. Chennai Petroleum Corporation, Mundra Port, MphasiS, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, Container Corporation and Aditya Birla Nuvo are some of the prominent gainers today. IFCI, Oracle Financial Services, Ashok Leyland, Tech Mahindra, Bank of India, GMR Infrastructure, United Spirits, Vijaya Bank, Reliance Natural Resources and Biocon are down with sharp losses.

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Sensex remains positive; RComm up 6% at 14:17 hrs

Amid alternate bouts of buying and selling in blue chip stocks, the market holds on in the positive territory this afternoon. Though a host of stocks from metal, realty, information technology and banking sectors are trading in the positive territory, gains posted by them are not highly pronounced as investors are seen opting to get out of counters at every small rise in prices. Pharma stocks are mostly subdued today.

Automobile stocks, which shrugged off a weak start and rallied higher, have drifted down due to lack of support. Oil and power stocks are trading mixed. The Sensex, which had surged to 15,598.18 earlier in the day, is up by 45.39 points or 0.29% at 15,512.85 at present. The Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange has posted a gain of 18.40 points or 0.4% at 4626.75. Buying continues unabated at the Reliance Communications counter for the second successive session.

The stock, which had moved up sharply on Wednesday after the company prepaid a portion of its debt, is seen attracting attention once again. With investors thronging the counter right from the opening bell, the stock is trading firm with a strong gain of 6% at Rs 292.70 now. Suzlon Energy has gained 4.7%. GAIL India is up by around 4.65%. Sterlite Industries, BPCL, Unitech, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, Infosys Technologies, Tata Consultancy Services, Reliance Capital, SAIL, Hindustan Unilever, Ambuja Cements, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India have also posted impressive gains.

Tata Power, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Reliance Industries and Maruti Suzuki have lost 0.5% - 1.5%. Hero Honda, Larsen & Toubro, HDFC Bank, Tata Motors, Wipro and Grasim Industries are also down in the red, albeit with marginal losses.

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Bonds belong in your portfolio

The global bond market dwarfs the global stock market. The market for bonds is estimated at $67 trillion, with nearly half of those bonds originated in the United States. That compares to a global stock market valuation of just above $40 trillion, even after the market crash. The $33 trillion of outstanding U.S. debt includes U.S. government bonds, corporate bonds, municipal (state and local) bonds, mortgage-related bonds, and short term money market securities.

Most of these bonds trade daily, just not as visibly as the prices set in the stock market. So perhaps it's time to at least understand the global bond market and the opportunities it offers for portfolio diversification. That's what's behind Fidelity's recent push to inform investors about bonds, and make it easier -- and less expensive -- to create your own portfolio of individual bonds or choose an appropriate bond fund to balance your portfolio.

There are online educational seminars, tools that help you choose from more than 10,000 bonds -- and more than 100 fixed income specialists who will help you over the phone. Richard Carter, VP of fixed income securities at Fidelity Brokerage, says: "Our goal is to make sure that investors have a properly diversified portfolio. They need to know that there is an alternative beyond stocks and cash or money market funds. Bonds -- whether individual securities or an appropriate bond fund -- can fill that gap."

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Oil near $71 as stocks sink, recovery questioned

VIENNA — Oil prices fell to near $71 a barrel Monday as China's stock market tumbled and commodities investors questioned whether the U.S. economy can recover strongly in the second half. Sinking Asian stock markets were led by a 6.7 percent fall in China's benchmark. Oil investors often look to stock markets as a barometer of sentiment about the economy. Benchmark crude for October delivery was down $1.51 cents to $71.23 a barrel noon European electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The contract Friday added 25 cents to settle at $72.74 after tumbling from near $75 earlier in the week. Oil has traded near $70 a barrel for most of the last few months as investors struggle to gauge how robust the U.S. recovery will be. Crude has tried and failed several times, including last week, to break through the $75 level. "Oil looks a little tired," said Christoffer Moltke-Leth, head of sales for Saxo Capital Markets in Singapore. "We're seeing an economic recovery, but that's already been built into the price."

The U.S. economy will likely have to grow at least 2 percent in the third quarter to enthuse traders and push the oil price past $75, Moltke-Leth said. Noting that oil prices have moved in a tight range between $70 and $75 per barrel for most of August, Vienna's JBC Energy said support has come "from a weaker dollar relative to the Euro and growing evidence that the global economy is picking up. "On the other hand, fundamentals remain plagued by high stock levels," said JBC in its daily newsletter.

Investors will be eyeing the U.S. unemployment report on Friday as a key indicator of the economy's health. A high unemployment rate this year has undermined consumer confidence and hurt crude demand. Oil could drift lower to near $65 a barrel during the next month on investor concerns the current economic recovery isn't sustainable, Moltke-Leth said. "We could see another dip next year when the fiscal stimulus starts to fade," he said.

"The consumer is still being careful." In other Nymex trading, gasoline for September delivery was down by close to 2 cents at $2.05 a gallon and heating oil plunged by almost 4 cents to $1.82 a gallon. Natural gas was steady at $3.04 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent crude was down $1.46 at $71.46. Associated Press writer Alex Kennedy contributed to this report from Singapore.

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US stock futures lower after sell-off in Asia

NEW YORK — Stocks moved toward a lower opening Monday following a big drop in Asian markets. U.S. stock futures fell after China's main index plunged 6.7 percent, adding to a nearly 3 percent drop on Friday. The selloffs in Chinese shares have been fueled by growing concerns over a tightening in bank lending and have weighed on markets around the globe this month.

Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.4 percent after the country's opposition party came to power in a landslide victory. European markets are also lower. Investors are heading in to the last day of August cautiously. There are no major economic reports scheduled for Monday, but key readings come later this week on manufacturing and employment in August that have the ability to either sustain or upset the market's massive six-month rally.

After rising more than 45 percent from 12-year lows in March, the Dow Jones industrial average stands less than 500 points away from 10,000. Investors have grown increasingly worried that the market may have gotten too far ahead of the economy and without evidence of actual economic growth, analysts have warned that the market's rally could fizzle in the coming weeks, especially as traders head into September, historically a rough month for the stock market.

Ahead of the market's open, Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 61, or 0.6 percent, to 9,475. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 5.90, or 0.6 percent, to 1,021.50, while Nasdaq 100 index futures fell 11.50, or 0.7 percent, to 1,631. In corporate news, oilfield services company Baker Hughes Inc. said it will buy BJ Services Co. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $5.5 billion. Oil prices lost $1.68 to $71.06 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Bond prices rose.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.42 percent from 3.45 percent late Friday. The dollar was higher against other major currencies, while gold prices fell. In late morning trading, Germany's DAX index and France's CAC-40 were down about 0.7 percent. The London Stock Exchange was closed for a public holiday.

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