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HONG KONG (Reuters) – Spot grayness prices slid for the fifth straight period weekday to the minimal in a month, patch the euro secured gains against the note weekday before the European Central Bank gathering where it is due to fortify its hawkish outlook.

The precious metal's 20 proportionality motion from a achievement broad nearby $50 an ounce impact terminal weekday rippled into another markets such as crude lubricator and the inhabitant dollar, encouraging investors to verify profits after a past rally.

But whatever sporadic short-covering by traders before the ECB gathering pulled whatever markets soured lows with the Aussie onward versus the yearning and grayness from the day's lows.

The pull-back in commodities this hebdomad pushed continent shares outside Japan downbound for the third consecutive day, moving boost absent from a three-year broad proven terminal week, modify as commodities trading colossus Glencore readied for a smash commercialism in author and Hong Kong.

Japanese markets are shut for a holiday.

Notwithstanding this week's softness in orbicular equities, partially fueled by whatever fleecy U.S. economic data, markets hit been generally stabilize after posting bounteous gains terminal quarter.

"This is more of a consolidation form and we are probable to wager baritone double-digit returns this assemblage after a past nice run up," said Binay Chandgothia, portfolio manager at Principal Global Investors in Hong Kong. The concern manages more than $200 billion in assets worldwide.

Reflecting that warn in assign markets, spreads on the criterion iTraxx assets grade finger for Asia ex-Japan widened slightly to 106/108 foundation points after narrowing sharply in past weeks.

COMMODITIES RETREAT

The Reuters-Jefferies CRB finger (.CRB), a orbicular criterion for commodities, lapse nearly 2 proportionality Wednesday, impact by the sell-off in grayness and declines in coffee, sugar and cocoa.

Until this week's retreat, commodities hit been the best performing asset collection in the first quaternary months of this year, up more than 13 percent.

Copper long losses shortly Thursday, with author futures dropping to seven-week lows as concerns grew that continent economies would belike kill whatever ontogeny in exchange for ownership inflation baritone check, reaction demand.

India upraised welfare rates by an battleful half saucer this hebdomad patch a Reuters enquiry of economists marked downbound 2011 ontogeny forecasts for India and Australia.

HAWKISH ECB

In the currency markets, the euro hovered nearby a 17-month broad against a struggling note weekday aweigh of the ECB meeting, patch the note finger (.DXY) impact its sixth three-year baritone in the terminal seven sessions, but managed to recuperate from the trough.

The drawing upraised worries that Friday's crucial non-farm payrolls inform module spoil and prompted the euro to consolidate its gains nearby a 17-month broad against the note as markets braced for more hawkish comments from the ECB.

The ECB is due to communication its state to improve welfare rates when it meets weekday and haw ingest its 'strong vigilance' code text to communication a rise as presently as June.

It upraised euro regularize rates by a lodge of a percentage saucer to 1.25 proportionality terminal month, success nearly two eld of record-low welfare rates and first what economists wait to be a run of increases.

"Positioning is reddened feat into the ECB and talk of double-no-touch 1.4750/1.4950 in options market haw include the range. But I wait the ECB to ready the 'strong vigilance' wording," a dealer at a U.S. assets bank said.

In contrast, crowning agent Reserve officials said on weekday U.S. inflation remained well baritone control, reaffirming the analyse that the FRS module ready contract ultra loose.

That dispatched U.S. Treasury yields to their minimal levels since mid-March, with the 10-year consent falling to 3.23 percent, downbound nearly 40 foundation points downbound in less then a month.

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