Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.19%, Shanghai Composite up 0.37%, Hang Seng up 0.28%, ASX up 0.52%
- Commodities: Gold at $1423.15 (-0.03%), Silver at $16.55 (-0.49%), Brent Oil at $63.38 (+0.32%), WTI Oil at $56.09 (+0.38%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.044, UK 10-year yield at 0.675, Germany 10-year yield at -0.379
News & Data:
- (USD) New Home Sales 646K vs 659K expected
- (USD) Flash Services PMI 52.2 vs 51.6 expected
- (USD) Flash Manufacturing PMI 50 vs 50.9 expected
- (CNY) CB Leading Index m/m 0.90% vs 0.50% previous
- (EUR) Belgian NBB Business Climate -5 vs -5 expected
- (GBP) High Street Lending 42.7K vs 42.9K expected
- (EUR) Private Loans y/y 3.30% vs 3.20% expected
- (EUR) M3 Money Supply y/y 4.50% vs 4.60% expected
- (EUR) Flash Services PMI 53.3 vs 53.3 expected
- (EUR) Flash Manufacturing PMI 46.4 vs 47.6 expected
- (CHF) Credit Suisse Economic Expectations -24 vs -30 previous
- (EUR) German Flash Services PMI 55.4 vs 55.3 expected
- (EUR) German Flash Manufacturing PMI 43.1 vs 45.1 expected
- (EUR) French Flash Manufacturing PMI 50 vs 51.6 expected
- (EUR) French Flash Services PMI 52.2 vs 52.7 expected
- (JPY) Flash Manufacturing PMI 49.6 vs 49.7 expected
- (USD) Crude Oil Inventories -10.8M vs -4.2M expected
- (JPY) SPPI y/y 0.70% vs 0.80% expected
Markets Update:
Asian markets are slightly up and mostly little changed in early trading Thursday, despite new record highs on Wall Street. Asian shares rose but struck a more cautious note than a tech-fuelled rally on Wall Street, while the euro stayed near two-month lows as soft economic data fuelled hopes the European Central Bank could cut rates at its meeting on Thursday.
Market attention on Thursday will be dependent on the ECB rate decision after PMI data showed euro zone manufacturing contracted for the sixth straight month. Markets are also expecting at least a dovish turn with a rate cut priced at 50%.
Japan’s Nikkei touched nearly three-month highs before trimming gains to be up 0.19%. Stocks in Hong Kong rise slightly despite worrying political crisis; Hang Seng is trading at a 0.28% gain. Australian shares neared a 12-year peak, driven by expectations that the ECB and the Federal Reserve will soon lower borrowing costs. ASX 200 gained a net of 0.5% and closed at 6811.8. Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Philip Lowe is due to speak later in the morning for more clues about the central bank’s future policy moves. Chinese benchmark Shanghai Component added 0.37%, building on the previous day’s gains, as investors looked with hope to a face-to-face meeting between top U.S. and Chinese negotiators next week for progress in the two countries’ trade war.
The dollar is mostly flat at 108.15 against the Japanese Yen. The euro remained near 2-month low against the U.S. dollar on Thursday in Asia ahead of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) policy meeting due later in the day. The weak global backdrop saw bond prices rise, with U.S. 10-year yields down to 2.044% from Wednesday’s close of 2.05%. Oil prices rose on Thursday in Asia on a weekly U.S. crude stockpile draw that came in almost three times the level previously expected.
WTI added 18 cents to $56.09 per barrel while Brent crude climbed 14 cents to $63.38. Lingering concerns about tensions in the Middle East were also cited as supporting the oil markets. Last Friday, Iran forces seized a British-flagged tanker in the Gulf. Gold prices on the other hand inched down on Thursday in Asia ahead of upcoming central bank decisions. Spot gold slipped 0.03% to $1,423.15 an ounce, short of last week’s peak of $1,452.60.
Upcoming Events:
- 10:00 am GMT – (GBP) CBI Realized Sales
- 11:45 am GMT – (EUR) Main Refinancing Rate
- 11:45 am GMT – (EUR) Monetary Policy Statement
- 12:30 pm GMT – (EUR) ECB Press Conference
- 12:30 pm GMT – (USD) Core Durable Goods Orders m/m
- 12:30 pm GMT – (USD) Durable Goods Orders m/m
- 12:30 pm GMT – (USD) Goods Trade Balance
- 12:30 pm GMT – (USD) Prelim Wholesale Inventories m/m
- 12:30 pm GMT – (USD) Unemployment Claims
- 2:30 pm GMT – (USD) Natural Gas Storage
- 11:30 pm GMT – (JPY) Tokyo Core CPI y/y
- &more…
