Turkish bond yield hits all-time low in thin trade

At 0830 GMT, the yield on the Aug 8, 2012 benchmark bond <0#TRTSYSUM=IS> stood at 7.10 percent, down from 7.16 percent on Wednesday.

Swiss franc hits record high vs dollar, euro

The Swiss franc, which has attracted funds escaping euro zone debt, hit a new high record against the euro. The euro was down 0.65 percent at 1.2424 francs EURCHF=, having fallen to 1.2404 francs--a record low.
Against the dollar, it rose to a high of 0.9377 francs. CHF=.

EURO GOVT-Bunds up with Treasuries after solid U.S. auction

The Treasury sale followed a disappointing 5-year offering on Tuesday and had the highest participation of indirect bidders since June 2009 as investors extended duration and offset short positions ahead of year-end.
March Bund futures FGBLc1 rose 60 ticks to 125.37. Two-year bond yields DE2YT=TWEB fell 2.4 basis points to 0.864 percent, with 10-year yields DE10YT=TWEB almost 5 bps lower at 2.96 percent.
Italy will sell up to 6 billion euros of 2013 and 2021 bonds as well as up to 2.5 billion euros of floating-rate certificates [ID:nRMERNE6BX].
Barclays Capital notes that both Italian bonds have underperformed not only Bunds, but also their Spanish equivalents since mid-December. "Past auction concessions have tended to reverse post the supply and thus we see room for some tightening in the next few days against both other peripherals and versus the ...core, especially as liquidity conditions normalise," Barclays Capital strategists said.

The sale comes after gross yields at an auction of zero coupon bonds and six-month bills on Wednesday spiked higher in the current holiday-thinned market [ID:nLDE6BR127]. 

Announcement of change in the total number of shares and votes in ASSA ABLOY AB

The conversion of convertible bonds related to Incentive 2006 has now started. The conversion is handled by an external liquidity agent and can take place during a 180-day period between December 2010 and June 2011.

In December 259,160 new B-shares were issued. In case of full conversion 2,332,350 new B-shares will be created up until June 2011.

Incentive 2006 is an incentive program for senior managers in the Group and ASSA ABLOY has issued four convertible bonds of a total value of EUR 38.4 M to a company especially established for this purpose.

The share capital at 30 December, 2010 amounted to SEK 366,177,194, comprising 19,175,323 A-shares and 347,001,871 B-shares. The total number of voting rights amounts to 538,755,101.

Wall Street jockeying for 2010 finish

“Funds are positioned as they would like to be for the end-of-the-year photo,” said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald, of the light volume and narrow volatility range that have marked recent sessions.

“It would take a major bit of news to derail their plan,” he added.
After closing Tuesday at its highest level since Aug. 28, 2008, the Dow Jones Industrial Average /quotes/comstock/10w!i:dji/delayed (DJIA 11,585, +9.84, +0.09%)  ended up 9.84 points, or 0.09%, at 11585.38.

Seventeen of the Dow’s 30 components gained, with fast-food giant McDonald’s Corp. /quotes/comstock/13*!mcd/quotes/nls/mcd (MCD 76.99, +0.56, +0.73%)  leading the gainers.
Up for a third straight session and by 13% for the year, the S&P 500 Index /quotes/comstock/21z!i1:in\x (SPX 1,260, +1.27, +0.10%)  gained 1.27 points, or 0.1%, to 1,259.78, with energy companies gaining the most and financials ranking as the biggest laggard among the 10 S&P industry groups.
The Nasdaq Composite Index /quotes/comstock/10y!i:comp (COMP 2,667, +4.05, +0.15%)  rose 4.05 points, or 0.15%, at 2,666.93.
Advancers outran decliners 19 to 11 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume hit 520 million shares, just over half of the 30-day average.