* Wall St ends about flat after news of Korea incident
* Euro climbs on news of accord on Greece safety net
* Oil falls to $80 as U.S. GDP data dents bullish mood
(Updates with close of U.S.)
By Herbert Lash and Jennifer Ablan
NEW YORK, March 26 (Reuters) - Global stocks pared gains
and government debt edged higher on Friday after the sinking of
a South Korean naval ship unsettled a market that was uncertain
about a standby financial aid plan for debt-stricken Greece.
Seoul played down suggestions that North Korea may have
attacked the ship with more than 100 crew on board, which sank
near the disputed maritime border with the North. Several
people died in the sinking, caused by an unexplained hole. For
details see: []
Market sentiment turned quickly on news of the sinking. But
global stocks later recovered losses and U.S. stocks closed
near break-even, with the Dow and S&P 500 slightly higher.
MSCI's all-country stock index <.MIWD00000PUS> rose 0.16
percent.
The Chicago Board Option Exchange's volatility index
<.VIX>, an inverse indicator of sentiment, fell 3.4 percent, on
the belief markets will remain relatively calm in the
near-term. The index had traded higher on news of the Korean
ship.
Data that showed U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter
of 2009 was slightly less brisk than the government had
previously estimated also weighed on sentiment in the stock
market. []
"With details still unclear about South Korea and the GDP
number getting revised downward, it's no wonder that the market
sold off a little," said Michael Pento, senior market
strategist at Delta Global Advisors in Huntington Beach,
California. []
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For a graphic on U.S. GDP and payrolls see: Economic growth
resumes. Will jobs follow? http://link.reuters.com/ves45j
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
The Dow Jones industrial average <> closed up 9.15
points, or 0.08 percent, at 10,850.36. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was up 0.86 points, or 0.07 percent, at
1,166.59. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was down 2.28
points, or 0.10 percent, at 2,395.13.
The Korean incident curbed enthusiasm about a deal unveiled
late Thursday under which Greece would receive both bilateral
loans from its euro zone partners and International Monetary
Fund funding if Athens faced severe difficulties.
[]
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
For a graphic on the euro zone crisis see
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/0210/EUROZONE_REPORT.html
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
The euro rose broadly after euro-zone leaders agreed on the
safety net for Greece, although uncertainties remained over the
country's long-term fiscal soundness. []
The euro <EUR=> was up 1 percent against the dollar at
$1.3412.
The package reduced some of the biggest risks on Greece and
the euro responded to that, said Daniel, Katzive, a director
for global foreign exchange at Credit Suisse in New York.
But the plan did not alleviate longer-term worries about
Greece and other fiscally vulnerable economies in the region,
such as Portugal and Spain, limiting the euro's gains.
"Ultimately, the markets remain apprehensive over their
fiscal situation and it will be hard for the euro to gain real
traction against the dollar in the short term," Katzive said.
The dollar was down against a basket of major currencies,
with the U.S. Dollar Index <.DXY> down 0.63 percent at 81.599.
Against the yen, the dollar <JPY=> was down 0.23 percent at
92.47.
U.S. Treasuries rose, pulling benchmark yields down from
nine-month highs, as the market attempted to stabilize after a
series of poorly-bid debt auctions pummeled the bond market and
in the wake of the Korean ship's sinking. []
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note <US10YT=RR> was up
7/32 in price to yield 3.86 percent.
Oil prices fell below $80 a barrel on the GDP data and as
the Greek financial aid plan failed to quell concern over a
fragile economic recovery. []
"You had the GDP revised lower and there's still concern
about the euro and the euro zone economy," said Richard
Ilczyszyn, senior market strategist at Lind-Waldock in
Chicago.
U.S. crude for May delivery <CLc1> settled at $80.00 per
barrel, down 53 cents, reversing gains earlier in the day.
ICE Brent <LCOc1> settled at $79.29, down 32 cents.
Gold rose, reclaiming $1,100 an ounce as the euro rally on
the Greece aid deal boosted investor sentiment.
[]
U.S. April gold futures <GCJ0> in New York settled up
$11.40 at $1,104.30 an ounce.
(Reporting by Ellis Mnyandu, Ryan Vlastelica, Vivianne
Rodrigues, Ellen Freilich, Burton Frierson and Frank Tang in
New York; Jo Winterbottom in London; writing by Herbert Lash;
Editing by Leslie Adler)
