EUR/USD ready to test 1.33 level … the Euro was forced away from the resistance level at 1.34 on Friday which saw it ease its way back towards the previous resistance level of 1.33.
Asian shares: Japan's Nikkei -0.70%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 2.11%(07:00 GMT), Korea's Kospi 0.22%, Australia's ASX 200 1.09% and China's Shanghai 2.38%.
France's finance minister has denied that the eurozone's second-biggest country has revised down its economic prospects for 2013. Pierre Moscovici was quoted on Saturday as saying that France's economy might shrink 0.1% this year, after predicting 0.1% growth earlier this year. But he said on Sunday: "I have not made any revision on the forecast of growth in France." He added that a new forecast might appear with the new budget next month. France has not had a year of negative growth since 2009. "We know the trends and this year growth will be weak and between -0.1% and 0.1%...I have every reason to believe that 2014 will be the first year of real growth for three years."
German news Der Spiegel reports that the country's central bank believes international creditors will have to agree a new bailout for Greece by early next year. The move would come months after Germany's Sept. 22 general election.
Fitch affirms Luxembourg at 'AAA', outlook stable.
The Swiss National Bank will abolish its franc ceiling once it starts raising interest rates, Vice President Jean-Pierre Danthine said. "The day the SNB decides to raise rates, there can no longer be a restricting minimum exchange rate," Danthine said in an interview. "Today the absolute priority is the cap, which we will keep in place as long as necessary." Danthine's comment about the ceiling remaining in place comes after SNB President Thomas Jordan said last month he had no intention of scrapping it anytime soon.
Japan's economy slowed more than forecast in the second quarter, as housing and business investment declined, complicating Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision on whether to proceed with a planned sales-tax rise. Gross domestic product rose an annualized 2.6 percent, after gaining 3.8 percent the previous quarter.
Japan's industrial production declined 3.1 percent in June from a month ago. The monthly rate was revised from the previous estimate of 3.3 percent decrease. On a yearly basis, industrial output was down 4.6 percent in June.
The latest CFTC positioning data recorded a net long speculative Euro position against the dollar for the first time since the middle of June, speculators had a net euro long position of + 6,061 contracts as of Tuesday. The overall net positioning was still long dollars even though short positions were cut for the third successive week. Price action over the second half of last week in Sterling, yen and Australian dollar suggests that net shorts in these currencies was cut substantially further.
Watch today: US budget balance, UK RICS housing.