The OECD leading indicator for the grouping of 33 ´´rich´´ nations has fallen for a fourth straight month from 102.1 to 101.6 in July.

European Central Bank governing council member Athanasios Orphanides said that the US economy has experienced a ´´growth slowdown, but the consensus view is not that of a recession.´´

The Financial Times has reported on its website that Italy has asked China to make ´´significant´´ purchases of Italian debt.

European shares hit fresh 2-year lows on Monday as rumours continued to swirl about a Greek debt default or ratings downgrades for French banks. There were no actual events that drove trade. The FTSEurofirst index fell by 2.7pct, the German Dax lost 2.3pct and the UK FTSE lost 1.6pct.

US sharemarkets staged a stunning rebound with the Dow Jones rallying 200pts in the last 45 minutes of trade. Rumours that Italy has asked China to buy its debt caused investors to claw up bargains. The Dow Jones closed higher by 69pts or 0.6pct after being down 236pts at one stage. The S&P 500 rose by 0.7pct while the Nasdaq gained 27pts or 1.1pct.

US treasuries fell on Monday (yields higher) as investors switched from bonds to equities in late trade. US 2yr yields rose by 3pts to 0.209pct and US 10yr yields rose by 3pts to 1.948pct.

The US dollar slumped against the Euro and commodity currencies in late trade as US shares rebounded and investors switched from safe-haven assets. The Euro rose from US$1.3555 to near the day´s highs of US$1.3680, before ending the US session near US$1.3670. The Aussie dollar fell from highs around US103.80c to US102.55c, but rebounded in late US trade to end the session near US103.40c. And the Japanese yen eased from 76.70 yen per US dollar to JPY77.35, before ending US trade at JPY77.25.

Global crude oil prices were mixed on Monday. Nymex crude oil rose by US95c or 1.1pct to US$88.19 a barrel and London Brent crude fell by US52c or 0.5pct to US$112.25 a barrel.

Base metal prices were mixed on the London Metal Exchange on Monday. Nickel rose 2.2pct, zinc rose 1.2pct and aluminium rose 0.2pct but other metals fell up to 1.1pct. But the gold price fell on Monday as investors booked profits to cover losses in other markets. The Comex December gold price fell by US$46.20 an ounce or 2.5pct to US$1,813.30.

Ahead: In Australia, the NAB business survey is released and ABARES releases its Crop Report. In the US, export and import prices together with weekly chain store sales data is due.