Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei up 1.19%, Shanghai Composite up 0.04%, Hang Seng up 0.98%, ASX up 0.68%
- Commodities : Gold at $1210.00 (+0.15%), Silver at $14.28 (+0.22%), Brent Oil at $78.22 (+0.05%), WTI Oil at $68.74 (+0.22%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 2.970, UK 10-year yield at 1.504, Germany 10-year yield at 0.425
News & Data:
- (GBP) MPC Official Bank Rate Votes 0-0-9 vs 0-0-9 expected
- (GBP) Official Bank Rate 0.75% vs 0.75% expected
- (EUR) Main Refinancing Rate 0.00% vs 0.00% expected
- (CAD) NHPI m/m 0.10% vs 0.10% expected
- (USD) CPI m/m 0.20% vs 0.30% expected
- (USD) Core CPI m/m 0.10% vs 0.20% expected
- (NZD) Business NZ Manufacturing Index 52 vs 51.2 previous
- (CNY) Fixed Asset Investment ytd/y 5.30% vs 5.50% expected
- (CNY) Industrial Production y/y 6.10% vs 6.00% expected
Markets Update:
Asian stocks followed their U.S. peers higher on Friday as investors cheered news of a new round of talks between the United States and China in coming days. A surge in the Turkish lira also helped eased concerns about the state of emerging markets after Turkey's central bank raised interest rates sharply. Chinese officials have welcomed an invitation from U.S Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin for new talks. However, U.S. President Donald Trump tempered market expectations, tweeting the U.S. is "under no pressure to make a deal with China."
Japan's Nikkei index was up as much as 1 percent to hover near a seven-month high as the dollar firmed up against the yen. Energy stocks were trading lower after a strong pullback in oil prices overnight. In the Greater China markets, the Hang Seng index extended its gains from yesterday, up by 0.81 percent in the afternoon.
Over on the mainland, however, markets bucked the overall positive trend. The Shanghai composite is up 0.04 percent while the Shenzhen composite was 0.06 percent lower. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was rising 0.6 percent, led by healthcare, information technology and mining stocks. South Korea's Kospi average was climbing 1.3 percent while New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index was marginally higher.
Markets also took in a decision on Thursday by Turkey’s central bank to raise interest rates to 24% as the country undergoes a currency crisis. The move goes against the wishes of President Recep Erdogan, who was keen to keep rates low. The Turkish lira is down about 60% against the U.S. dollar year-to-date, but after the central bank’s announcement, it gained about 4% on the day. In Europe, the Bank of England decided to hold rates at 0.75% due to “greater uncertainty about future developments in the EU withdrawal process”, while the European Central Bank also kept its benchmark interest rates unchanged.
Upcoming Events:
- 11:00 AM GMT – (GBP) BOE Gov Carney Speaks
- 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Core Retail Sales m/m
- 01:30 PM GMT – (USD) Retail Sales m/m
- 03:00 PM GMT – (USD) Prelim UoM Consumer Sentiment
- &more…
