Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 0.35%, Shanghai Composite down 0.44%, Hang Seng down 0.42%, ASX up 0.13%
- Commodities : Gold at $1348.95 (+0.39%), Silver at $14.92 (+0.17%), Brent Oil at $61.83 (+0.85%), WTI Oil at $52.52 (+0.46%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.086, UK 10-year yield at 0.835, Germany 10-year yield at -0.249
News & Data:
- (NZD) FPI m/m 0.70% vs -0.10% previous
- (NZD) Business NZ Manufacturing Index 50.2 vs 52.7 previous
- (USD) 30-y Bond Auction 2.61|2.3 vs 2.89|2.2 previous
- (USD) Natural Gas Storage 102B vs 110B expected
- (USD) Unemployment Claims 222K vs 215K expected
- (USD) Import Prices m/m -0.30% vs -0.30% expected
- (CAD) NHPI m/m 0.00% vs 0.10% expected
- Hong Kong Interbank Rates Soars To 2008 Highs To Preserve Bank Stability, Crush FX Shorts
Markets Update:
Asian stock markets are mostly lower on Friday despite the positive cues overnight from Wall Street. Worries about rising tensions in the Middle East weighed on investor sentiment after two oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday. The U.S. blamed Iran for the attacks and said it will defend its forces and interests in the Middle East.
Mainland Chinese markets slipped by the morning session’s end after earlier seeing gains. The Shanghai composite was down 0.4% and the Shenzhen component declined 0.9%. The Nikkei 225 in Japan rose 0.4% in afternoon trade, while the Topix added 0.3%. South Korea’s Kospi traded 0.5% lower.
Over in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index slipped 0.4% by the afternoon as tensions remained high over a controversial extradition bill. Over in Australia, the ASX 200 traded 0.13% higher as the sectors mostly advanced.
The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies was little changed at 97.074 after ending the previous day nearly flat, with caution ahead of the next week’s Fed meeting keeping the greenback in a tight range. U.S. crude gained 0.46% to $52.52 per barrel after rising more than 2 percent on Thursday.
Upcoming Events:
- 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Core Retail Sales m/m
- 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Retail Sales m/m
- 01:55 PM GMT – (GBP) BOE Gov Carney Speaks
- 03:00 PM GMT – (USD) Prelim UoM Consumer Sentiment
- &more…
