Sovereign debt worries continue to weigh on Europe’s common currency. The euro sank to 1.406 this morning against the U.S. dollar, dropping for the third day out of the last four. Gold held firm despite strength in the U.S. dollar, rising $1.00 to $1527.25 per ounce. Silver followed gold higher, rising 1.7% to $37.26 per ounce.
Commodity prices, which received a boost yesterday after an upgrade from Goldman Sachs, moved higher across the board with nickel and copper leading the way. Nickel advanced 2.2% to $10.64 per pound while copper climbed to $4.09 per pound.
After the close yesterday, Applied Materials announced that its third quarter earnings would miss analyst expectations. The news weighed on global stock markets as investors worried that corporate earnings were set to decelerate amid slower global growth and lower profit margins. S&P 500 stock futures fell 1.60 to 1312.00 ahead of the opening bell on Wall Street.
