Market Overview
Trade Concerns Drag Down Asian Markets Again, Yen and Franc Lifted
Swiss Franc and Yen firm up again in Asian session as markets are gradually convinced that a full-blown US-China trade war is underway. Tensions between the two countries have clearly worsened after trade negotiation collapsed weeks ago. And it's clearly not just about trade but a broad range of...
Canadian Dollar Jumps on Retail Sales, Sterling Lower on Brexit, FOMC Minutes Next
US stocks open slightly lower today while major European indices are trading in red. But it's too early to say if risk aversion in back. US-China trade war is the biggest risks to the global economy and there is no end insight. Instead, it's reported that US is going...
Markets Mixed as Brexit and Trade War Remain Unresolved
Direction isn't very clear in the financial markets today as they're generally in consolidative mode. Sterling was lifted briefly overnight by UK Prime Minister Theresa May's new Brexit plan. But it was quickly back to square one after the plan was overwhelmingly rejected by MPs. For now, Canadian Dollar...
Yen Lower as Investors Relieved by Suspension of Huawei Ban, Sterling Higher on Short Covering
Risk aversion eased mildly today as markets respond positive to US decision to delay the sanctions of Huawei for 90 days. After some initial hesitation, Yen sell-off is picking up momentum in early US session, because of rally in stocks and treasury yields. On the other hand, Sterling is...
Australian Dollar Tumbles as RBA Hints on Rate Cut; Huawei Sanctions Temporarily Eased
Australian Dollar continues to be the spotlight of the week. It's knocked down by RBA Governor's comment that they's going to consider cutting interest rates in June meeting. It's actually slightly earlier than market expectations of an August cut. The selloff is more than enough to reverse post election...
US-China Trade War Intensifies with Huawei Isolation, Currency Markets Shrug Risk Aversion
US-China trade war remains a dominant theme in the global financial markets today. Words from both sides continued to indicate hard line stances. It doesn't quite matter how much close to facts are their rhetorics. What matters most is that neither the US or China is going to back...
Australian Dollar Cheers Election Results, Euro and Franc Turn Softer
Australian Dollar open generally higher this week as traders cheer election results over the weekend. Canadian Dollar is also firm after USMCA members reached an agreement to remove steel tariffs and retaliations. Risks sentiments are steady in mixed Asian markets. Nikkei closed mildly higher following much stronger than expected...
CHF, USD & JPY Surged on Deals, Sterling Plummeted
Deal, deal, deals. They're the main themes in the markets last week. The cross-party Brexit talks in UK collapsed and a high profile Brexiteer is tipped to lead the Brexit process after current Prime Minister steps down. Tensions between US and China escalated further. A trade deal is now...
Sterling Pressured as Cross-Party Brexit Talks Collapsed, Sentiments also Weighed Down by Trade Worries
Sterling suffers heavy selling today as after Brexit negotiations between the UK government and opposition Labour formally collapsed. More uncertainties lie ahead as Prime Minister Theresa May will lay our the time line for stepping down, whether her Brexit deal would be approved by the Commons in June or...
Yen Mildly Higher as China Said to be Unkeen to Resume Trade Talks with US
Asian markets once again decouple from the US. While US stocks staged a strong rebound overnight, Asian indices are generally mixed. Weakness is indeed seen in China's Shanghai SSE while Yuan resumes recent free fall. There is some negative reaction to report that China is not eager to resume...
Sterling Extends Decline, Markets Shrug Trumps Huawei Threats
Market sentiments are generally steady today. Better than expected job and housing data lift Dollar mildly higher in early US session. Yen and Swiss Franc are trading of the softer side, paring some of this week's gains. While US moves to contain Huawei catch a lot of headlines, there...
Yen Firm as Risk Aversion Remains, Australian Dollar Lower on Unemployment Rate
US stocks recovered overnight on talks that Trump is going to delay auto tariffs decision, due May 18, by up to 6-months. All major stock indices staged mild recovery. German DAX also reversed earlier losses to close higher. However, such optimism wasn't carried through to Asian session today. In...
Yen and Franc Surge as German Yield in Free Fall on Italy Budget
Worries over Italy's budget takes center stage today. Italy 10-year yield hit as high as 2.812. On the other hand, German 10-year yield dived to as low as -0.131. US 10-year yield is also dragged down to as low as 2.364 so far. These are clearly signs of risk...
Australian Dollar Tumbles on Wage Growth Miss, China Data Point to More Slowdown
After some initial hesitation, Asian markets picked up some momentum and strengthen broadly, recovering some of this week's losses. Though, strength is so far limited with lots of uncertainty ahead. It's a fact that US-China trade war is dragging on for longer despite Trump's "positive" words. At the same...
Market Sentiments Stabilized, UK Job Data and German Confidence Ignored
Markets sentiments generally stabilized today as it seems that US and China are still will to continue trade negotiations. Nevertheless, otherwise some pleasing words, there is nothing concrete, not even a scheduled meeting. Further decline in German 10-year yield, deeper into negative territory, is a sign of nervousness among...
Yen and Franc Retreat as Sentiments Stablized Somewhat, But More Tariffs Still on the Way
Market sentiments somewhat stabilized in Asian session today. Major indices opened lower, following the selloff in US. But losses are so far rather limited. Indeed, in the currency markets, Yen and Swiss Franc are paring some of yesterday's strong gains while Gold also retreats back to below 1300. USD/CNH...
China Announced Retaliations as Nobody Read Trump’s Threat Tweets
Rallies in Yen and Swiss Franc accelerate while selloffs in commodity currencies intensify on US-China trade war today. Trump "stepped up" his pressure on China and warned the latter not to retaliate. But it's actually unsure who he was talking to as it's a known that Twitter is blocked...
Risk Aversion Staying after US and China Admitted the Gulf of Differences in Trade
Markets are back in risk averse mode in Asian session, with heavy selloff see in Chinese stocks and Yuan. Some noted that the gulf between US and China in trade talks have widened since last week's development. But the "gulf" has always been there. The negotiations just reached a...
US-China Trade War Escalated, No End in Sight as Principle Differences Remain
US-China trade war was the center of global focus last week. Markets were expecting a deal with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He visited Washington Instead Trump announced to escalate to full-blown level after China reneged on its commitments during the negotiations. Trump's decision was understandable even though it may...
Canadian Dollar Surges on Strong Job Data, Markets Shrug New Tariffs
A new round of US tariffs on Chinese imports took effect today and market reactions are rather muted. Trump stepped up his hard-line rhetorics and tweeted he's in no rush to make a trade deal. Yet investors shrug off such comments. Sterling also paid little attention to UK GDP...