Global Markets:
- Asian stock markets: Nikkei rose 1.41 %, Shanghai Composite gained 0.60 %, Hang Seng climbed 1.09 %, ASX 200 up 0.28 %
- Commodities: Gold at $1251.00, Silver at $15.80, WTI Oil at $56.66, Brent Oil at $62.19
- Rates: US 10-year yield at 2.37, UK 10-year yield at 1.25, German 10-year yield at 0.29
News & Data:
- (AUD) Home Loans m/m -0.6 % vs -2.2 % expected
- (CNY) Trade Balance 264 B vs 238 B expected
- (JPY) Final GDP q/q 0.6 % vs 0.4 % expected
- (CAD) Ivey PMI 63.0 vs 62.7 expected
- (CAD) Building Permits m/m 3.5 % vs 1.7 % expected
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U.S. jobless claims decline for third straight week
- (USD) Unemployment Claims 236K vs 239K expected
- (GBP) Halifax HPI m/m 0.5 % vs 0.2 % expected
- Bitcoin tops record $19,000, then plunges in wild 2-day ride
- Strong November U.S. job gains anticipated; wages seen rising- RTRS
Markets Update:
Asia-pacific equities opened on a positive note on Friday as Markets digested better-than-expected China trade data and U.S. markets finished higher on Thursday as investors stateside awaited developments regarding tax reform. Bitcoin soared above $19,000 on Thursday on the Coinbase exchange, but later tumbled some 20 percent from that level. The cryptocurrency, which started the year under $1,000, has experienced massive moves in recent days.
USDJPY continued to trade higher on Friday as the Japanese Yen lost 0.3 percent against the US Dollar. Currently the Yen is valued at 113.40 per Dollar. The Nikkei 225 advanced 1.41 percent, rebounding after recording a near 2 percent fall in the middle of the week. Also providing support for the increase was the softer yen, which traded above the 113 level to the dollar.
EURUSD is slightly lower for the session and is currently seen trading below 1.1760 against the US Dollar, The EUR is currently trading in its 2 week lows as the dollar is poised for a solid weekly advance after U.S. tax-cut legislation made progress in Congress. The dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of currencies was slightly up currently valued at 93.81 heading for a weekly gain above 1 percent. The yield on 10-year Treasuries was steady at 2.37 percent.
AUDUSD is currently seen trading above 0.7510 up from session lows of around 0.7501, The currency was little changed by expectation-topping China trade data. Meanwhile, the Australian stocks put on close to 0.3 percent gains for the day. Australia’s 10-year yield climbed more than one basis point to 2.53 percent. The kiwi followed a similar price action and is slightly up on Friday as the New Zealand dollar is seen trading around 0.6836 against the US Dollar up from session lows of 0.6822.
Upcoming Events:
- All Day –(EUR) Italian Bank Holiday
- 09:30 GMT – (GBP) Manufacturing Production m/m
- 09:30 GMT – (GBP) Goods Trade Balance
- 13:30 GMT – (USD) Average Hourly Earnings m/m
- 13:30 GMT – (USD) Non-Farm Employment Change
- 13:30 GMT – (USD) Unemployment Rate
- 15:15 GMT – (USD) Prelim UoM Consumer Sentiment
- & More…
