UPDATE 4-Putin to pardon jailed tycoon Khodorkovsky

UPDATE 4-Putin to pardon jailed tycoon Khodorkovsky
Fitch Revises Lebanon's Outlook to Negative; Affirms IDR at 'B'
FOREX-Dollar trades near five-year high vs yen in wake of Fed
Fitch Affirms Metropolitan Municipality of Bursa at 'BB'; Outlook Stable
Fitch Affirms City of Rennes at 'AA'; Outlook Stable
Fitch Affirms Metropolitan Community of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines at 'A+', Outlook Stable
Fitch Affirms Gabon at 'BB-'; Outlook Stable
Sterling falls versus buoyant dollar, but UK recovery to support
Spain could start Catalunya Banc sale process in January -source
Spain's NCG Banco faces 1 bln eur of uncovered losses -source
GLOBAL MARKETS-European shares rally after Fed sugar-coats taper move
CANADA FX DEBT-C$ hits 3-1/2-year low in wake of Fed pullback
UPDATE 1-Russian stocks gain on news Putin may soon pardon Khodorkovsky
FOREX-Dollar hovers near five-year high vs yen a day after Fed
FX Concepts' demise signals tough times for forex hedge funds
FOREX-Dollar pares gains after Fed sweetens taper message
"Fragile five" elections add to 2014 risks for emerging markets
UPDATE 1-Putin says will soon pardon jailed oil tycoon Khodorkovsky
Russian stocks gain on news Putin may soon pardon Khodorkovsky
Putin says will soon pardon jailed oil tycoon Khodorkovsky
GLOBAL MARKETS-European shares rally as Fed sugar-coats taper move
Putin: Third criminal case against jailed tycoon Khodorkovsky unlikely
Brazil real drops 0.5 pct as cenbank slows pace of FX intervention
Sterling pauses after sharp rally, but UK recovery lends support
UPDATE 2-Ukraine sees economy growing in 2014 with Russian aid

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 10:17 AM PST

* Khodorkovsky release marks Putin confidence, Olympic gesture

Fitch Revises Lebanon's Outlook to Negative; Affirms IDR at 'B'

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 10:11 AM PST

Link to Fitch Ratings' Report: Lebanon - Rating Action ReportPARIS/LONDON, December 19 (Fitch) Fitch Ratings has revised Lebanon's Outlook to Negative from Stable. Its Long-term foreign and local...

FOREX-Dollar trades near five-year high vs yen in wake of Fed

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 09:04 AM PST

NEW YORK, Dec 19 (Reuters) - The dollar traded near a five-year high against the yen on Thursday, a day after the Federal Reserve announced it would begin to gradually wind down its massive...

Fitch Affirms Metropolitan Municipality of Bursa at 'BB'; Outlook Stable

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

FRANKFURT/BARCELONA/LONDON, December 19 (Fitch) Fitch Ratings has affirmed Metropolitan Municipality of Bursa's (Bursa) Long-term foreign and local Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB' and its...

Fitch Affirms City of Rennes at 'AA'; Outlook Stable

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 08:43 AM PST

PARIS, December 19 (Fitch) Fitch Ratings has affirmed the City of Rennes's Long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'AA' and its Short-term foreign currency IDR at 'F1+'....

Fitch Affirms Metropolitan Community of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines at 'A+', Outlook Stable

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 08:43 AM PST

PARIS, December 19 (Fitch) Fitch Ratings has affirmed Metropolitan Community of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines's (CASQY) Long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at 'A+', and...

Fitch Affirms Gabon at 'BB-'; Outlook Stable

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 08:35 AM PST

PARIS/LONDON, December 19 (Fitch) Fitch Ratings has affirmed Gabon's Long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at 'BB-'. The issue ratings on Gabon's senior unsecured foreign...

Sterling falls versus buoyant dollar, but UK recovery to support

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 08:13 AM PST

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Sterling fell against the dollar on Thursday, after the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to cut bond-buying gave a boost to the greenback.

Spain could start Catalunya Banc sale process in January -source

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 08:00 AM PST

MADRID, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Spain could kick off a sale process for nationalised lender Catalunya Banc in January, a source at bank restructuring fund FROB said on Thursday.

Spain's NCG Banco faces 1 bln eur of uncovered losses -source

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 07:34 AM PST

MADRID, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Spain's nationalised NCG Banco, set to be taken over by Venezuela's Banesco, faces potential losses of 1 billion euros ($1.38 billion) that are not covered by provisions, a...

GLOBAL MARKETS-European shares rally after Fed sugar-coats taper move

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 07:28 AM PST

* Europe, Japan shares rally, Asia currencies give ground

CANADA FX DEBT-C$ hits 3-1/2-year low in wake of Fed pullback

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 06:51 AM PST

* Canadian dollar at C$1.0703 or 93.43 U.S. cents * Loonie trades at lowest level since 2010 in overnight session * Bond prices lower across the maturity curve By Leah Schnurr TORONTO, Dec 19...

UPDATE 1-Russian stocks gain on news Putin may soon pardon Khodorkovsky

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 06:39 AM PST

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russian stock markets gained on Thursday after President Vladimir Putin said he would pardon jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a boost for investors increasingly...

FOREX-Dollar hovers near five-year high vs yen a day after Fed

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 06:26 AM PST

NEW YORK, Dec 19 (Reuters) - The dollar traded near a five-year high against the yen on Thursday, a day after the Federal Reserve surprised some investors by announcing its long-awaited first cut in...

FX Concepts' demise signals tough times for forex hedge funds

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 05:32 AM PST

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - The collapse of FX Concepts, once the world's biggest currency hedge fund, is symptomatic of the dramatic decline in a once-profitable sector that faces another tough year...

FOREX-Dollar pares gains after Fed sweetens taper message

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 05:23 AM PST

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - The dollar struggled to hold onto gains on Thursday after the Federal Reserve surprised many analysts by announcing its long-awaited first cut in bond-buying but couched it...

"Fragile five" elections add to 2014 risks for emerging markets

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 05:19 AM PST

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Elections in all the "fragile five" emerging economies next year, along with the thorny topics of Syria and Iran, will make life tricky for investors trying to steer...

UPDATE 1-Putin says will soon pardon jailed oil tycoon Khodorkovsky

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 05:06 AM PST

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he would soon pardon jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who still has eight months left to serve of a more than 10-year jail...

Russian stocks gain on news Putin may soon pardon Khodorkovsky

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 04:57 AM PST

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russian stocks extended gains on Thursday after President Vladimir Putin said he would soon pardon oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, which one trader said gave the...

Putin says will soon pardon jailed oil tycoon Khodorkovsky

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 04:31 AM PST

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he would soon pardon jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who still has eight months left to serve of a more than...

GLOBAL MARKETS-European shares rally as Fed sugar-coats taper move

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 04:17 AM PST

* Fed trims bond buying $10 bln to $75 bln, starting in Jan

Putin: Third criminal case against jailed tycoon Khodorkovsky unlikely

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 03:53 AM PST

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said he saw little likelihood of a new criminal case being opened against jailed tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky's defunct oil firm...

Brazil real drops 0.5 pct as cenbank slows pace of FX intervention

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 03:19 AM PST

RIO DE JANEIRO, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Brazil's real slid about half a percentage point early on Thursday after the central bank announced it will slow down the pace of currency intervention as of next...

Sterling pauses after sharp rally, but UK recovery lends support

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 02:44 AM PST

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Sterling trimmed this week's gains on Thursday after volatile overnight trading followed the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to cut bond-buying and the UK currency's...

UPDATE 2-Ukraine sees economy growing in 2014 with Russian aid

Posted: 19 Dec 2013 02:43 AM PST

KIEV, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Ukraine expects economic growth of 3 percent in 2014, a draft budget showed on Thursday, days after Russia offered a $15 billion lifeline to help revive its smaller...