Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.24%, Shanghai Composite down 0.99%, Hang Seng down 0.69%, ASX up 0.02%
- Commodities : Gold at $1256.80 (-0.25%), Silver at $16.19 (-0.40%), Brent Oil at $76.34 (+0.26%), WTI Oil at $70.72 (+0.27%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.877, UK 10-year yield at 1.295, Germany 10-year yield at 0.337
News & Data:
- (NZD) ANZ Business Confidence -39 vs -27.2 previous
- (NZD) Trade Balance 294M vs 100M expected
- (USD) CB Consumer Confidence 126.4 vs 127.6 expected
- Australian Dollar Weakens Despite Strong Chinese Industrial Profits
- Serious Fraud Office and Reserve Bank investigating CBL Insurance matters
- UK Chancellor Hammond: Hopes Britain Can Seize Unlimited Opportunities Brought By Belt And Road Initiative – Caixin
- Yuan Tumbles To 6-Month Lows As SGH Warns China Will Seek To Reduce US Treasuries "Appropriately"
Markets Update:
Asian stock markets are mostly lower on Wednesday amid lingering trade war concerns and following the surge in crude oil prices to above $70 a barrel after U.S. officials threatened sanctions on countries that continue to import oil from Iran. Crude oil prices continued to rise in Asian trades.
The Japanese market is declining despite the positive cues from Wall Street and a weaker yen as lingering worries about a global trade war weighed on investor sentiment. Nikkei had been faring better but soon succumbed to risk aversion and fell 0.5 percent. Elsewhere, greater China markets notched slight gains in morning trade only to lose steam later in the day. The Australian market is modestly higher as higher commodity prices helped offset lingering trade war concerns. Gains by mining and oil stocks helped offset weakness in the banking sector.
In currency markets, trade-sensitive currencies including the Australian and New Zealand dollars lost ground while the safe-haven yen found demand. The kiwi dollar hit its lowest in seven months at $0.6817. The dollar has been aided in part by recent gains on the Chinese yuan, which had stirred speculation Beijing was weakening its currency to bolster exports. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) fixed the yuan midpoint at a six-month low of 6.5569 per dollar on Wednesday. That was down 0.6 percent from the previous fix but actually a little firmer than market expectations.
In commodity markets, gold was seemingly no longer considered a safe haven by investors and hit its lowest in over six months.
Upcoming Events:
- 09:00 AM GMT – (CHF) Credit Suisse Economic Expectations
- 09:00 AM GMT – (EUR) M3 Money Supply y/y
- 09:30 AM GMT – (GBP) BOE Gov Carney Speaks
- 09:30 AM GMT – (GBP) BOE Financial Stability Report
- 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Core Durable Goods Orders m/m
- 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Durable Goods Orders m/m
- 03:30 PM GMT – (USD) Crude Oil Inventories
- 04:00 PM GMT – (USD) FOMC Member Quarles Speaks
- 08:00 PM GMT – (CAD) BOC Gov Poloz Speaks
- 10:00 PM GMT – (NZD) Official Cash Rate
- 10:00 PM GMT – (NZD) RBNZ Rate Statement
- &more…
