A Quick Glance at News

v Asian stocks retreated from an eight- week high, Australia’s dollar weakened and crude oil dropped before the European Central Bank meets to review interest rates and Spain sells debt.

v The ECB will probably reduce its benchmark interest rate to a record-low 0.75 percent at a policy meeting today, while the Bank of England will step up bond purchases that boost the supply of pounds, according to Bloomberg surveys of economists

v .The Bank of Japan will use monetary policy to ensure financial stability, Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said.

v The Bank of England will raise its target for bond purchases by 50 billion pounds ($78 billion) to 375 billion pounds, according to the median estimate in a separate survey.

v Factory orders in Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, probably dropped 6 percent in May from a year earlier, a Bloomberg survey of economists showed before a report today.

v U.S. 10-year Treasuries inched up in Asia on Thursday, but were in for a subdued post-holiday session as markets awaited the outcome of the European Central Bank policy meeting and the all-important U.S. jobs figures due later in the week.

v ADP Employer Services, which compiles a private report on payrolls, will say today that U.S. jobs growth slowed to 100,000 in June from 133,000 in May, a survey showed

v Government data on nonfarm payrolls tomorrow are forecast to show an increase of 90,000 workers for June after a 69,000 gain in May, according to the median estimate in a separate survey.

v Gold edged up on Thursday, shrugging off a firm dollar, ahead of an expected rate cut by the European Central Bank that should boost liquidity and enhance bullion's appeal.

v Oil fell in New York on speculation data from Europe to the U.S. will signal an economic slowdown that threatens to cut demand.

v China’s stocks fell, dragging down the benchmark index by the most in a week, on concern proposed rules for banks may curb credit growth and speculation intensified the government won’t loosen property restrictions.

v India is using Euros to clear most of its purchases of Iranian oil through a Turkish bank because of hurdles in making rupee payments, according to three people with knowledge of the transactions.

v German government bonds were steady at Thursday's open with investors sidelined ahead of a Spanish debt auction and European Central Bank policy meeting where expectations are for rates to be cut to a record low.

v China’s official statistics may be lagging behind independent data that show a pickup in the world’s second-biggest economy last quarter, according to a new private survey modeled on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Beige Book.

v General Motors Co and Face book Inc are discussing the return of the U.S. automaker as a paid advertiser almost two months after GM said it would stop running ads on the social networking website, sources close to the situation said on Tuesday.

v Fiat (FIA.MI) shares rose 5 percent on Wednesday, bolstered by optimism about the Italian automaker's ability to buy out the remaining 38.2 percent in its U.S. unit Chrysler, which would give it a bigger benefit from a booming U.S. market.