Scoreboard: US data delight

In US economic data, weekly claims for unemployment insurance fell by 14,000 to 298,000, below forecasts for a result near 300,000. The leading index rose by 0.9 per cent in July, above forecasts for a 0.6 per cent gain. The Philadelphia Federal Reserve index rose from 23.9 to 28.0 in August, above forecasts for a result near 19.2. And existing home sales rose by 2.4 per cent in July to 5.15 million, above forecasts for a result near 5.02 million.    

European shares rose on Thursday with investors comforted by the latest reading on the German economy. The flash composite purchasing managers index eased from 55.7 to 54.9 in August, still above the 50 mark that separates contraction from expansion. The FTSEurofirst 300 index lifted by 0.7 per cent with the German Dax up 0.9 per cent and the UK FTSE gained 0.3 per cent. Australia's major miners were lower in London trade with shares in BHP Billiton down by 0.4 per cent while Rio Tinto lost 0.7 per cent.

US sharemarkets rose on Thursday with investors encouraged by the latest economic data. However investors awaited the start of a meeting of central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Shares in Bank of America rose by 4.2 per cent after reaching a $16.65 billion legal settlement with the US Government. Shares in Hewlett Packard rose by 5.4 per cent in response to figures showing higher revenues in the latest quarter. The Dow Jones index rose by 61 points or 0.4 per cent with the S&P 500 index up by 0.3 per cent to record highs while the Nasdaq gained 5.6 points or 0.1 per cent to 14-year highs.

US treasury prices rose on Thursday (yields lower) as traders positioned ahead of a key speech from the Federal Reserve chair. US 2-year yields fell by 1 point to 0.472 per cent while US 10-year yields fell by 3 points to 2.405 per cent.

The euro and commodity currencies rose against the US dollar over European and US sessions on Thursday. The euro rose from lows near $US1.3245 to around $US1.3285, ending US trade near the highs. The Aussie dollar rose from lows near US92.50c to US93.05c before ending the US session close to US93.00c. And the Japanese yen held between 103.61 yen per US dollar and JPY103.88, ending US trade near JPY103.79.

World oil prices ended mixed on Thursday. Investors mulled mixed economic data in the US and China as well as news that Saud Arabia pumped 10 million barrels per day of crude in July. Brent crude rose by US35 cents to $US102.63 a barrel but the US Nymex price fell on contract expiry, down by US51c a barrel or 0.5 per cent to $US93.96 a barrel.

Base metal prices were mixed on Thursday with zinc and copper up around 0.1 per cent while other metals fell up to 1 per cent with tin leading the way. Gold prices fell again on Thursday, hitting a two-month low, with the Comex gold futures quote down by $US19.80 or 1.5 per cent to $US1,275.40 per ounce. Iron ore fell by US40c on Thursday to $US91.90 a tonne. 

Ahead: In Australia, no major economic data is scheduled. In the US, the Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen delivers a speech.

Craig James is chief economist at Commsec.