Petróleo sob pressão após ataque dos EUA ao Irão

[Figas]

Monday, July 14, 2003 6:16 a.m. ET

By Natsuko Waki

LONDON (Reuters) - The dollar extended recent gains to two-month highs against the euro and the Swiss franc on Monday as investors anticipated upbeat U.S. corporate earnings this week to buoy Wall Street further.

U.S. stock futures were indicating a firm start on Wall Street later after major stock indices gained around one percent on Friday, with the market in an optimistic mood for this week's bulk of U.S. quarterly earnings and economic data.

Investors are also keen to see what Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has to say about the state of the economy when he testifies on Tuesday.

"We will have a number of U.S. data and earnings this week and unless we have a significant negative shock the dollar will stay strong, provided equity sentiment remains positive," said Fatih Yilmaz, senior FX strategist at Bank of America.

"Greenspan will try to manage market expectations but will keep a neutral stance in my opinion. He will be cautiously optimistic."

By 0945 GMT the dollar had hit a two-month peak against the euro at $1.1244 before settling around a quarter percent up on the day at $1.1260. It is now nearly seven cents above a record low hit in late May.

The greenback also hit its highest in 2-1/2 months of 1.3817 Swiss francs. It was mired in a tight range against the yen, at around 117.58 as optimism over Japan's recovery was countered by wariness Japan could step in to curb its currency's strength.

The euro was half a percent down at 132.36 yen, around eight yen below a recent record peak.

U.S. CENTER STAGE

Greenspan testifies before the House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and appears before the Senate Banking Committee on Wednesday.

"Greenspan is going to try to be as upbeat as possible on the economy but it will be difficult for him to be too upbeat when a lot of the current numbers are still pessimistic," said Julian Jessop, chief European economist at Standard Chartered.

U.S. retail sales and consumer prices data are due on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively. Before that however, U.S. banks Citigroup and Bank of America kick off the week's earnings reports.

In Europe, the German ZEW economic indicator is due on Tuesday. Traders are also watching European policymakers after comments from German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and European Central Bank president Wim Duisenberg last week indicated further euro strength would not be that welcome.

STOCKS AND BOJ

In Japan, the Nikkei average ended trade up 1.25 percent at 9,755.63.

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) kicked off its two-day Policy Board meeting on Monday, but it is expected to leave policy unchanged.

"The rise in long-term interest rates will likely be a source for major discussion," said Tomoko Fujii, economic and market analyst at Nikko Citigroup.

"But as stock prices are firming and there is a sign of improvement in economic indicators, I think (the BOJ) will likely refrain from making any new moves and keep watching the situation."



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