* Yen, Swiss franc rise on safe-haven bid
* Stocks up after profit-taking, technology companies lead
* Commodities rise on weak dollar; gold hits 7-week high
(Updates with details, prices)
By Manuela Badawy
NEW YORK, Aug 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury prices rose on
Monday and global stocks were little changed as weak growth in
Japan added to worries over a tepid global economic recovery
and cut investors' appetite for risk.
Currencies perceived as safe harbors such as the yen and
Swiss franc rose and gold hit a seven-weeks high, as weak
economic growth around the world spurred talk of deflation.
News that Japan's economy expanded by only 0.1 percent in
the second quarter also dragged on crude oil prices, on fears
that Japan, the world's fourth largest energy consumer, would
slow oil purchases.
"The phrase du jour is going to be deflation and it's not
only going to last for a day but for some time," said Christian
Cooper, senior rates trader at Jefferies & Co in New York.
"There's real concern that without further stimulation of
the economy, the overall weakness could lead not only to a
double dip but to outright price deflation. ... It may be an
actual event as opposed to a concern."
Japan's gross domestic product grew a much
slower-than-expected 0.1 percent in April-June, translating to
an annualized increase of 0.4 percent as export growth
moderated and a stimulus-driven recovery in consumption ran out
of steam.
That was far below 4.4 percent annualized growth in the
first three months of the year.
With the latest output figures, Japan slipped behind China
in the ranking of world economies. China now stands as the
world's second-largest economy.
U.S. stocks managed to rise as investors put aside worries
about the economy to take advantage of beaten-down prices.
Technology shares led gains after a technical measure, the
Bollinger band, pointed to an oversold condition in the PHLX
semiconductor index <.SOX> on Friday. The PHLX index rose
nearly 1 percent on Monday, with Intel Corp <INTC.O>, the
world's biggest chip maker, up 1.6 percent.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DIJ> was up 7.95 points,
or 0.08 percent, at 10,311.10. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index
<.SPX> was up 1.09 points, or 0.10 percent, at 1,080.34. The
Nasdaq Composite Index <> was up 14.17 points, or 0.65
percent, at 2,187.65.
Although Wall Street managed to gain even as U.S. data on
the housing market and manufacturing showed the economic
recovery losing steam, in Europe, shares closed lower as the
data from the United States and Japan hurt sentiment.
U.S. homebuilder sentiment unexpectedly fell for a third
straight month in August to its lowest level since March 2009,
according to an industry survey.
And while the New York Federal Reserve Bank reported that a
gauge of manufacturing in New York state rose in August after
dropping in July, the Empire State index came in below
forecast.
The pan-European stocks FTSEurofirst 300 index <>
closed down 0.01 percent. World stocks measured by the MSCI
All-Country World Index <.MIWD00000PUS> were up 0.3 percent
after falling for four days in a row. The Thomson Reuters
global stock index <.TRXFLDGLPU> gained 0.41 percent.
Japan's Nikkei <> fell 0.6 percent, recovering from an
early drop of as much as 1.7 percent after gross domestic
product grew just 0.1 percent in the second quarter, compared
with forecasts of 0.6 percent.
"What has been driving sentiment for a little while now has
been this concern about the loss of momentum in the global
recovery," said Mike Lenhoff, chief strategist and head of
research at Brewin Dolphin in London.
"The GDP figures out of Japan this morning clearly didn't
help. For the balance of the month, we are probably not going
to go anywhere. The earnings season was very good but it's
behind us now."
The fall in Treasury yields has been a big factor weighing
on the U.S. currency against the yen because of the recent high
correlation between dollar/yen and Treasury yields.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note <US10YT=RR> was up
22/32, with the yield at 2.6 percent, hitting a 17-month low.
The 30-year U.S. Treasury bond <US30YT=RR> was trading 2
points higher in price, with the yield at 3.75 percent, down
from 3.86 percent at Friday's close and a 16-month low.
The two-year U.S. Treasury note <US2YT=RR> was up 2/32, its
yield at 0.5 percent.
The Swiss franc and the Japanese yen, both used to fund
leveraged carry trades, are typically sought in times of market
stress.
Against the Japanese yen<JPY=> , the dollar was down 1.03
percent at 85.30 from a previous session close of 86.190.
The dollar fell 1.2 percent to 1.0375 francs after hitting
its lowest since Aug. 6. The euro was 0.5 percent lower against
the Swiss franc <CHF=> at 1.3335, having earlier dropped to its
lowest since July 8.
However, the euro <EUR=> was up 0.69 percent at $1.2838
from a previous session close of $1.2750.
In the commodity market, gold rose to its highest level
since early July, as the gloomy Japanese economic data stoked
investor concern about the pace of global economic recovery.
Spot gold <XAU=> rose 0.85 percent to $1,223.90 an ounce
after hitting an intraday day high of $1,227.15 -- its highest
since July 1. Bullion struck a record high around $1,264 in
June.
Copper <MCU3> advanced 1 percent, helped by lower
inventories and a weaker dollar, and crude oil <CLc1> prices
fell 0.2 percent at $75.24.
(Additional reporting by Edward Krudy, Emily Flitter, and Nick
Olivari in New York and Dominic Lau in London; Editing by
Leslie Adler)
