* Dollar stabilises as short-covering emerges
* Asian shares falter as investors take a breather
* Gold pauses after setting new record overnight
(Repeating to more subscribers)
By Susan Fenton
HONG KONG, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The dollar stabilised in
early trade on Tuesday after losing ground in New York, while
Asian shares slipped as investors shrugged off upbeat U.S. home
sale data and took a breather after recent gains.
The dollar recovered ground as investors in Asia grew more
cautious ahead of a string of U.S. economic data this week and
the start of the Christmas shopping season on Friday after the
U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, which will be a key test of consumer
confidence. []
The dollar <.DXY> was up 0.2 percent against a basket of
major currencies after falling in New York where the market
took comments by U.S. Federal Reserve official James Bullard on
Sunday as further evidence the U.S. would maintain its very low
interest rate policy for some time.
Dealers in Tokyo said some investors on Tuesday were
closing dollar short-positions ahead of the Thanksgiving
holiday.
Asian shares slid despite a solid performance on Wall
Street, where the Dow Jones <> rose 1.3 percent as data
showed existing home sales reached their highest level in
two-and-a-half years.
The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks traded outside Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> was down 0.4 percent but it has already rallied
66 percent this year, leading some investors to question
whether economic data is strong enough to justify further gains
at this stage.
Revised third-quarter U.S. GDP data and a U.S. consumer
confidence report later on Tuesday will give more clues on the
strength of the world's largest economy. <ECONUS>
Sales at U.S. retailers on Friday after the holiday could
yield vital clues to the recovery power of American consumers,
whose spending accounts for more than two-thirds of the
economy. They could also signal whether Asian exporters can
expect a rush of late orders before Christmas.
The Thomson Reuters index of regional shares <.TRXFLDAXPU>
was virtually unchanged.
"It's a day-to-day situation. Any snippets of good news are
well received here, but the gains are not necessarily
sustained," said David Spry, research manager at F.W. Holst in
Australia, where the main stock index <> slipped 0.2
percent.
"The market has anticipated a fair bit already and we
haven't got much to show for it yet, results don't come out
till February next year," he said, referring to the next
corporate profit reporting season.
JAL HITS RECORD LOW
Japan's Nikkei index <> dipped 0.5 percent as a firm
yen <JPY=> hit shares of exporters and investors worried about
the economy.
Finance Minister Hirohisa Fujii said Japanese demand was
weak and fiscal policy alone could not revive it, putting
pressure on the Bank of Japan to respond to deflation.
[]
Japan Airlines <9205.T> tumbled 7 percent, hitting a record
low at one point, on fears the struggling carrier could face
bankruptcy and on news that trading house Mitsui & Co <8031.T>
had sold its entire stake in the firm. []
As the dollar steadied, gold <XAU=> retreated to $1,165.20
after hitting a new record high at $1,173.50 on Monday.
Oil prices <CLc1> were little changed at around $77.50 a
barrel ahead of a weekly inventory report due later from the
American Petroleum Institute.
"The market is basically in a holding pattern, awaiting
more data," said Peter McGuire, managing director of Commodity
Warrants Australia.
Growing jitters over looming monthly economic data in South
Korea sent Korean government bonds lower and the five-year
government bond yield <KRTSY5Y=KQ> rose three basis points to
4.83 percent.
(Additional reporting by Victoria Thieberger in MELBOURNE and
Jennifer Tan in SINGAPORE; Editing by Kim Coghill)
(susan.fenton@thomsonreuters.com; +852 2843 6367; Reuters
Messaging: susan.fenton.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)
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