Global Markets:
- Asian stock markets: Nikkei down 0.87 %, Shanghai Composite up 0.31 %, Hang Seng up 0.03 %, ASX 200 lost 0.33 %
- Commodities: Gold at $1285.70 (-0.14 %), Silver at $17.01 (0.24 %), WTI Oil at $57.09 (-0.14 %), Brent Oil at $63.81 (-0.19 %)
- Rates: US 10-year yield at 2.35, UK 10-year yield at 1.26, German 10-year yield at 0.38
News & Data:
- (JPY) Tertiary Industry Activity m/m -0.2 % vs -0.1 % expected
- (USD) Unemployment Claims 239 K vs 232 K expected
- (USD) Natural Gas Storage 15 B vs 15 B expected
- (CAD) NHPI m/m 0.2 % vs 0.2 % expected
- (EUR) German Trade Balance 21.8 B vs 21.0 B expected
- (CHF) Unemployment Rate 3.1 % vs 3.1 % expected
- Asian Stocks slip as U.S. tax doubts snap global winning streak
- China lifts foreign ownership limits on financial firms – RTRS
Markets Update:
Asia pacific equity markets declined under selling pressure on Friday following overnight weakness on Wall Street after Senate Republicans unveiled their tax reform plan on Thursday which differed from House of Representatives’ version in several key areas.
USDJPY traded in a small range between 113.25 to 113.50, currently the US Dollar is valued at 113.40 against the Yen, as the JPY is heading for an overall weekly gain. The Nikkei Stock Average was down 1.4% early on Friday adding to Thursday’s declines, following the market’s recent strong run that saw the index close at a 25-year high on Wednesday.
EURUSD had a rather quiet session on Friday trading in a tight around 1.1645. The dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of currencies was flat and is currently valued at 94.47. The 10-year U.S. Treasuries yield also briefly fell, though it came back to 2.35 percent, pressured by this week’s government and corporate debt supply.
NZDUSD had an active session early on Friday. The kiwi fell 0.2 percent against the US Dollar and is currently valued at 69.40 as the New Zealand Finance Minister Grant Robertson saying the new RBNZ mandata addition could mean looser policy in some circumstances. The AUDUSD is currently seen trading at 0.7687 after falling to lows of 0.7665 earlier in the session following Reserve Bank of Australia November Statement on Monetary Policy
Upcoming Events:
- All Day – (USD) Bank Holiday
- 00:30 GMT – (AUD) RBA Monetary Policy Statement
- 09:30 GMT – (GBP) Manufacturing Production m/m
- 09:30 GMT – (GBP) Goods Trade Balance
- 15:00 GMT – (USD) Prelim UoM Consumer Sentiment
