Trading in European stock futures point to a higher open on Tuesday, although gains could be limited ahead of Spain's debt auctions today and again on Thursday. As the Greek relief rally fizzles out, investors appear to believe that European leaders should do more to support the euro and stem the region's debt crisis.
In an attempt to upgrade the war chest and help protect countries from the fallout of the euro zone debt crisis, China has reportedly agreed to contribute as much as $43 billion to boost the IMF's crisis- fighting reserves, while India and Russia agreed to provide $10 billion each to the IMF.
A paper published by IMF staff noted that with the recession continuing, and unemployment high and on the rise in many countries, European policymakers needs to do more.
Meanwhile, dashing hopes of a shift in stance on austerity measures, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said that Greece should not be given more leeway to comply with austerity measures under the EU and IMF-led bailout program.
Asian stocks are turning in a mixed performance and commodities are little changed, as investors are waiting to see what Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke has to say on a fresh round of economic stimulus, especially after the positive Greek election outcome.
In economic releases, Germany's economic confidence survey and U.K. inflation figures are due in the European session.
In corporate news, Swiss private banking group Julius Baer Group said it is in discussions with Bank of America Corp. about Merrill Lynch's international wealth management business.
Sika AG said it successfully placed a 6-year bond issue with an amount of CHF 150 million and a 10-year bond issue of CHF 150 million in the Swiss capital market.
Scharf AG said it has received an order worth more than 1 million euros in Russia for monorail hanging railways.
Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc said it has delivered 13 large azimuth thrusters to the world's largest construction vessel, currently being built at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, South Korea for Swiss ship owner and operator Allseas Group.
British natural gas firm BG Group Plc said it issued hybrid bonds totaling $1.57 billion, another step in the execution of its approved funding plan to support the company's investment program.
KineMed Inc. announced a multi-year R&D collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline that will apply KineMed's proprietary biomarker discovery platform in therapeutic areas of interest to GSK.
U.K.-based telecom company Cable & Wireless Worldwide Plc has received shareholder approval to approve the recommended acquisition offer from telecom giant Vodafone Group.
European stocks gave up their early gains on Monday, as initial relief over the Greek election results gave way to concerns about problems in Europe after yields on both Spanish and Italian bonds rose, with Spain's 10-year yield climbing above the 7-percent mark. Bad debts held by Spanish banks rose to an 18-year high in April, data released from the nation's central bank showed, fueling concerns that the debt crisis is deepening.
The Euro Stoxx 50 index of eurozone bluechip stocks fell 1.2 percent, but the Stoxx Europe 50 index, which includes some major U.K. companies, edged up marginally. Around Europe, France's CAC 40 slid 0.7 percent, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100, the German DAX and the SMI of Switzerland rose between 0.2 percent and half a percent.
U.S. stocks ended on a mixed note amid lackluster trades overnight, as lingering worries over Europe's debt crisis and caution ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting tempered optimism about Greece's attempts to form a coalition government. The Dow slid 0.2 percent, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 0.8 percent and the S&P 500 edged up 0.1 percent.
by RTT Staff Writer
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