***Economic Data***

– (EU) EU Conservative leaders meet in Finland on Debt Crisis; includes German Chancellor Merkel
– (BR) Brazil Feb IBGE Inflation IPCA M/M: 0.8% v 0.8%e; Y/Y: 6.0% v 6.0%e
– (RU) Russia Feb Consumer Prices M/M: 0.8% v 0.9%e; Y/Y: 9.5% v 9.7%e; CPI YTD: 3.2 v 3.3%e
– (RU) Russia Feb Core CPI M/M: 0.7 v 0.9%e; Core YTD: 1.8 v 1.1% prior
– (BR) Brazil Feb Vehicle Sales:274.2 K v 244.9K prior; Vehicle Production: 310.7K v 261.8K prior; Vehicle Exports: 64.6K v 53.6K prior
– (US) Feb Change in Nonfarm Payrolls: 192K v 196Ke; Change in Private Payrolls: 222K v 200Ke; Change in Manufacturing Payrolls: 33K v 25Ke
– (US) Feb Unemployment Rate: 8.9% v 9.1%e
– (US) Feb Avg Hourly Earning M/M: 0.0% v 0.2%e; Avg Weekly Hours: 34.2 v 34.3e
– (MX) Mexico Feb Consumer Confidence: 92.3 v 91.7e
– (US) Jan Factory Orders: 3.1% v 2.0%e
– (CA) Canada Feb Ivey Purchasing Managers Index: 69.3 v 51.2e
– (MX) Mexico Central Bank leaves Overnight Rate unchanged at 4.50%; As expected

– Sentiment is being driven by the interplay of crude prices and the February jobs report this morning. US equity futures hardly budged in the wake of payrolls before the open. The report was largely in line with expectations, holding no big surprises for markets. Indices opened flat on the day and then dropped sharply after 10:00, as crude jumped a buck to fresh three-year highs briefly above $104 on reports of Libyan forces fighting over a key oil export terminal and refinery. Prices dropped immediately, but equities remain in the red. The jobs report did not deliver the long-awaited breakout in employment growth, although analysts point out that seasonal revisions held back the numbers to a certain degree. Nevertheless, this is the highest rate of job creation since the spike that accompanied the initial census hiring last May. The unemployment rate dropped below 9%, although the historically low labor force participation rate plays a role here. Precious metals spiked with oil, with silver pushing out to fresh 35-year highs above $35 and spot gold just below all-time highs at $1,431. Treasury prices have firmed after the jobs report failed to match inflated expectations. The benchmark 10-year yield has slipped back towards 3.5% while fed fund futures contracts, especially mid 2012 contracts have rallied shaving off some rate hike expectations.

– In equity news, shares of Wal-Mart rose one percent in the premarket after the retailer raised its quarterly dividend by 21%. WMT has given up most of its gains with the slide in overall markets. Semi name Marvell Technology missed top- and bottom-line expectations in its fourth quarter report, and shares of MRVL are down 8%. Key bank names are down sharply after Bank of America/Merrill Lynch cut its ratings on Goldman Sachs and Citigroup to a Neutral from Buy. GS is down 1.5%, Citi is down 2% and MS is down 2.5%. Shares of retailers are giving up gains made in the wake of yesterday’s better same-store sales, as flat wage growth makes investors question the ability of retail spending to grow.

– The employment data sent the greenback lower against European pairs. Dealers quickly pointed out the flat average hourly wages data might fail to keep up with rising energy prices and curb domestic consumption. EUR/USD tested the 1.40 handle for the first time since early Nov. The CHF and JPY also benefited from risk aversion sentiment.

***Looking Ahead***

– 11:00 (US) Fed to purchase $1-2B in TIPS
– 16:00 (CO) Colombia Feb Producer Price Index M/M: No est v 1.2% prior; Y/Y: No est v 4.4% prior
– 16:00 (US) Fed’s Yellen speaks on International System in Paris
– 20:00 (CO) Colombia Feb Consumer Price Index M/M: 1.0%e v 0.9% prior; Y/Y: 3.6%e v 3.4% prior