MORNING REPORT
(7am AEDT)

US initial jobless claims fell by 6,000 to 403,000 in the past week. The 4-week moving average of claims held at a 6-month low. The Conference Board Leading Index rose by 0.2pct in September.

US existing home sales fell by 3pct September, as banks tightened lending standards ahead of the removal of some government support for mortgages. The Philadelphia Fed business activity index rose from -17.5 to 8.7 in October.

European shares slumped on Thursday to two-week lows. Investors concerns were heightened after sources in Germany´s coalition said the weekend summit will go ahead but won't reach a decision on leveraging the euro zone´s rescue fund. Cyclical stocks were hit hard with European mining index down 3.6pct. The FTSEurofirst index fell by 1.4pct, with the UK FTSE down 1.2pct, while the German Dax was lower by 2.5pct.

US sharemarkets erased early losses and closed higher on Thursday. The turnaround occurred after France and Germany issued a joint statement confirming that euro zone leaders will discuss in detail a comprehensive a solution to the region´s debt crisis at the EU summit this weekend however no decision would be adopted before a second meeting to be held next Wednesday. The Dow Jones rose 37pts or 0.3pct, while the S&P 500 was higher by 0.5pct and the Nasdaq lost 5pts or 0.2pct.

US long-dated treasuries fell on Thursday (yields higher) as US equities recovered late in the trading session. US 2yr yields fell 1pt to 0.266pct while US 10yr yields rose by 3pts to 2.189pct.

The Euro and commodity currencies rallied in overnight trade against the greenback. The Euro hit early highs near US$1.3825 before falling to lows around US$1.3660 and recovering to near US$1.3785 at the end of US trade. The Aussie dollar rallied from lows near US101.40 to highs around US102.70c ending US trade near US102.45c. And the Japanese yen traded between 76.65 yen per US dollar and JPY77.10, ending US trade near JPY76.80.

US crude oil futures fell on Thursday following weak US economic data pointing to a sluggish economy. However losses were limited after the release of the joint France & Germany statement on the EU summit. Nymex crude oil fell by US81c or 0.9pct to US$85.30 a barrel while Brent crude rose by $1.37 to US$109.76 a barrel.

Base metal prices fell on Thursday as investors remained concerned that the EU summit will not be able to find a definitive solution to the euro zone debt crisis. Copper record the biggest falls down 6.6pct while other metals lost between 3.3-5.7pct. And gold fell in line with other commodities. Comex December gold fell by US$34.10 an ounce to US$1,616.55.

Ahead: In Australia, import and export price data is released. In the US, no economic data is expected.