Global Markets:
- Asian stock markets: Nikkei up 0.65 %, Shanghai Composite gained 0.10 %, Hang Seng rose 1.20 %, ASX 200 rallied 0.70 %
- Commodities: Gold at $1255 (+0.05 %), Silver at $16.51 (+0.10 %), WTI Oil at $49.20 (+0.90 %), Brent Oil at $49.25 (+0.90 %)
- Rates: US 10 year yield at 1.84, UK 10 year yield at 1.44, German 10 year yield at 0.17
News & Data:
- New Zealand Credit Card Spending (MoM) Apr: 2.5% (prev rev -1.4%)
- New Zealand Credit Card Spending (YoY) Apr: 9.1% (prev 4.8%)
- RBA's Edwards: Country At Risk Of AAA Loss — Australian
- RBA’s Edwards: Chatter Over Lower Inflation Target "Wildly Premature" — WSJ
- Edwards: 2 to 3% inflation target has always been flexible
- RBA’s Edwards: Economy has 'pep', its adding jobs
- BoJ Gov Kuroda Stresses Readiness To Act If Yen Rise Threatens Inflation Goal — WSJ
- German MoF: Sees 1.7% GDP Growth In 2016 After Strong Q1 Gains — BBG
- PBoC Fixes Yuan At 6.5510 (prev 6.5531)
- Asian shares poised for weekly loss, Fed talk lifts dollar – RTRS
- Oil prices rise as turmoil in Nigeria adds to global supply disruptions – RTRS
Markets Update:
The US Dollar weakened slightly against most major currencies overnight, except the Japanese Yen. USD/JPY started the trading day at 109.95 and rose to a high of 110.15 later in the session, supported by the rally in Japanese equity markets. Resistance is seen at 110.40 and 110.60; support lies at 109.65.
EUR/USD volatility has been subdued in the past 12 hours and the pair consolidated in a 1.1195-1.1210 range overnight. Similar price action was seen in GBP/USD, which was caught in a 1.4590-1.4610 range. The Pound has remained resilient after stronger than expected UK retail sales data and the Brexit referendum poll on Wednesday.
AUD/USD recovered after bouncing off 0.7175 yesterday and rose to 0.7242 in Asia. NZD/USD found support at 0.6710 in yesterday's NY session and reached 0.6740 ahead of the Asian open. Later in the session, it extended gains to 0.6775.
Upcoming Events:
- 13:30 BST – Canadian CPI
- 13:30 BST – Canadian Retail Sales
- 14:00 BST – FOMC Member Tarullo speaks
- 15:00 BST – US Existing Home Sales
- 20:30 BST – CFTC Positioning Data
