The commodity market stabilized after slumping in the prior day. Sovereign concerns in Greece remained and US data were mixed. Yet, most have been priced in and some investors started bargain hunting as they thought the selloff was overextended. The WTI crude contract for July delivery fluctuated within a narrow range and closed flat while the August Brent contract rebounded and ended the day gaining +0.89%. Gold stayed firm as escalated debt problems in Greece upstaged strength in the US dollar. EU's Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn said that the review on Greece with the IMF will be concluded on next Sunday and by that time, 'the Eurogroup will be able to decide on the disbursement of the 5th tranche of the loans for Greece in early July'. Moreover, 'the Eurogroup on Sunday-Monday will discuss the contents and conditions of a successor program for Greece, and the nature of private sector involvement in this, with a the view to taking decisions at the next Eurogroup meeting of July 11'. These comments comforted the market a bit. However, plenty of uncertainties remained as long as the new bailout plan for Greece is not finalized and losses of European banks are not estimated. Peripheral yield spreads continued to widen. US data released yesterday were not entirely weak. While the Philly Fed manufacturing index fell to the negative territory, initial jobless claims dropped to a 4-week low and housing permits climbed more than expected. The Philly Fed manufacturing index surprisingly plunged to -7.7 in June, the lowest level since July 2009, from +3.9 a month ago. The reading was disappointing as it signaled contraction in New York area. Initial jobless claims slipped -16K to 414K, the lowest level in 4 weeks, in the week ended June 11. The 4-week average was maintained at 425K. Home-building in US also showed signs of improvement in May. Housing starts rose +3.51% m/m in May to 560 K as activities in the West jumped +18.1% increase in the West, more than offsetting declines in the Northeast and Midwest. Building permits increased +8.70% to 612 K during the month. Focus of today will be US confidence data and the University of Michigan survey.

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