Global Markets:
- Asian Stock Markets : Nikkei down 0.53%, Shanghai Composite up 0.90%, Hang Seng up 0.14%, ASX down 0.09%
- Commodities : Gold at $1215.50 (+0.04%), Silver at $14.29 (+0.19%), Brent Oil at $67.28 (+0.99%), WTI Oil at $56.94 (+0.85%)
- Rates : US 10-year yield at 3.114, UK 10-year yield at 1.357, Germany 10-year yield at 0.371
News & Data:
- (NZD) Business NZ Manufacturing Index 53.5 vs 51.9 previous
- (USD) Crude Oil Inventories 10.3M vs 2.9M expected
- (USD) Philly Fed Manufacturing Index 12.9 vs 20.1 expected
- (USD) Retail Sales m/m 0.80% vs 0.60% expected
- (USD) Core Retail Sales m/m 0.70% vs 0.50% expected
- (GBP) Retail Sales m/m -0.50% vs 0.20% expected
- Fed Plans 2019 Review of How It Pursues Goals on Jobs, Inflation
- Rising Brexit uncertainty has reduced investment and employment
Markets Update:
Asian stock markets are mixed on Friday despite the overnight gains on Wall Street with investors turning cautious as they digested conflicting reports about progress in U.S.-China trade talks and also news about the political turmoil in the UK after some high-profile government resignations protesting against Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit plans.
Asian shares had started firm after reports the United States might pause on further China tariffs gave Wall Street a fillip, but a near 17 percent plunge in Nvidia's stock tempered the mood.
The mainland Chinese markets, which have been closely watched amid the ongoing trade spat between Washington and Beijing, had a muted performance in early trade – before catching up later in the day. The Shanghai composite was up 0.9 percent and the Shenzhen composite gained 1.48 percent.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was marginally higher. Stocks in Japan lost early gains as the Nikkei 225 traded down 0.53 percent while the Topix index shed 0.55 percent. In South Korea, the Kospi pared some of its gains to trade fractionally higher. In Australia, the ASX 200 was down 0.09 percent, with most sectors lower.
Sterling had stolen the limelight overnight after a rash of resignations rocked Prime Minister Theresa May's government and threw into doubt her long-awaited Brexit agreement just hours after it was unveiled. Fears that May's hard-fought deal could collapse sent British markets into gyrations not seen since the June 2016 referendum on EU membership. Yields on 5-year paper staged the largest one-day decline since the Brexit vote, at almost 15 basis points.
In commodity markets, gold was up a shade at $1,215.50. Oil prices regained a little composure after their recent drubbing, helped by a decline in U.S. fuel stockpiles and the possibility of a cut in OPEC output. Bitcoin hit a one-year trough overnight after tumbling 10 percent early in the week when support at $6,000 gave way.
Upcoming Events:
- 09:30 AM GMT – (EUR) ECB President Draghi Speaks
- 02:00 PM GMT – (EUR) German Buba President Weidmann Speaks
- 02:30 PM GMT – (CAD) Foreign Securities Purchases
- 02:30 PM GMT – (CAD) Manufacturing Sales m/m
- &more…
