Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.50%, Shanghai Composite down 0.15%, Hang Seng up 0.09%, ASX up 0.36%
- Commodities : Gold at $1328.95 (+0.03%), Silver at $15.80 (-0.18%), Brent Oil at $65.57 (+0.32%), WTI Oil at $55.84 (+0.61%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.636, UK 10-year yield at 1.206, Germany 10-year yield at 0.111
News & Data:
- (AUD) Construction Work Done q/q -3.10% vs 0.60% expected
- (NZD) Trade Balance -914M vs -300M expected
- (USD) CB Consumer Confidence 131.4 vs 124.8 expected
- BoJ’s Kuroda: As easing continues the time, cost of normalizing rises
- Signs of AU economic slowdown as construction drops off
- Trump Says They Will Be Signing Big Trade Deals Today, Including On Boeing
Markets Update:
Asian stock markets are mostly higher on Wednesday despite the negative cues overnight from Wall Street as comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reinforced the Fed’s decision to adopt a “patient approach” with regard to future interest rate hikes. Investors now look ahead to the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Vietnam later today.
The mainland Chinese markets gave up early gains, with the Shanghai composite falling 0.2 percent and the Shenzhen component falling 1.2 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index also rose 0.1 percent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.5 percent in afternoon trade while the Topix advanced 0.2 percent. South Korea’s Kospi also added 0.4 percent, as Hyundai Motor shares surged around 5 percent after the company rejected on Tuesday a payout call by activist investor Elliot Management. The ASX 200 in Australia rose 0.4 percent, with majority of the sectors advancing.
In the currency market, the dollar was softer after the Fed chief’s testimony, with its index against major peers dipping more than 0.4 percent to its lowest in three weeks overnight. The British pound vaulted after Prime Minister Theresa May offered lawmakers the chance to vote on delaying Brexit. Against the Japanese yen, the greenback held steady at 110.53 yen per dollar.
Oil futures rose slightly on Tuesday after news that OPEC planned to continue production cuts despite Trump criticizing the producer group for rising crude prices a day earlier.
Upcoming Events:
- 11:00 AM GMT – (EUR) German Buba President Weidmann Speaks
- 02:30 PM GMT – (CAD) CPI m/m
- 02:30 PM GMT – (CAD) Common CPI y/y
- 02:30 PM GMT – (CAD) Median CPI y/y
- 02:30 PM GMT – (CAD) Trimmed CPI y/y
- 04:00 PM GMT – (USD) Fed Chair Powell Testifies
- &more…
