The yen and Treasuries advanced as speculation CIT Group Inc. will file for bankruptcy and blasts in Indonesia’s capital spurred demand for safer assets.
Japan's currency climbed against 15 of its 16 major counterparts after New-York based CIT, the lender facing insolvency because it failed to obtain U.S. guarantees for its bonds, said it is still in talks to secure financing. CIT may need as much as $6 billion to avoid bankruptcy, CreditSights Inc. analysts said yesterday. CIT executives are seeking $2 billion to $3 billion in financing from the private sector, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the situation.
The yen gained for a second day against the euro as bombs tore through the Ritz Carlton and the JW Marriott hotels in the Indonesian capital, killing at least nine people and injuring 42 others, police said.
The yen rose to 132.14 versus the euro as of 7:35 a.m. in London from 132.89 yesterday in New York, and climbed to 93.66 per dollar from 93.93. The U.S. currency gained to $1.4089 per euro from $1.4148.
Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index declined 0.3 percent, suggesting U.S. stocks will open trading lower. The Dollar Index, which the ICE uses to track the currency against those of six major U.S. trading partners such as the euro and the yen, rose 0.4 percent to 79.422.
Crude oil fell in New York, reversing two days of gains, as the dollar rose against the euro, limiting the appeal of commodities as an investment. Crude oil for August delivery fell as much as 52 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $61.50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was at $61.71 a barrel at 2:31 p.m. Singapore time. It rose as much as 0.5 percent to $62.35 a barrel
