Euro Soars Higher After Draghi’s Comments. The mood was a bit cheerier in the European markets, with ECB head Draghi declaring that the financial sector no longer poses a threat to the economy. The bullish sentiment around the Eurozone currency is going strong, suggesting it has some more room to rally.
Aussie Tumbled Across the Board After Governor Lowe’s Speech. The Australian dollar bears painted the forex town red on Thursday as the commodity currency was weighed down by the RBA’s shaky tightening bias, the credit rating downgrade on China, and the sharp drop in gold prices.
Kiwi Slips to 72.81 US Cents as Fed’s Rate Hike. The New Zealand dollar fell as the US Federal Reserve signals on balance sheet unwinding and interest rate hikes outweighed gains made earlier in the week after a poll showing the National Party in the lead ahead of tomorrow’s vote.
Traders Looking Forward to How Prime Minister May’s Speech Might Turn Out. All eyes and ears are on U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May as she prepares to deliver her Brexit speech in Florence today. She is expected to propose a two-year transition period for both parties to hash things out, during which the U.K. can retain access to the single market even after the official split happens on March 2019.
Gold Falls on Dec Rate Hike Expectations. Gold fell in reaction to a rising US dollar, losing over 1% and falling back under the $1,300 level after the Fed signaled it was on track to raise US interest rates again in December. The metal is highly sensitive to rising US rates, which boost the cost of holding non-yielding bullion relative to other assets.
Oil Prices Steady Ahead of OPEC Meeting on Supply Cut Extension. Oil prices held steady in early Asian trade on Friday as the market waited to see whether major oil producers would extend supply cuts beyond March at a meeting in Vienna later in the day.
Watch Out Today for:
09:00 am GMT: EUR ECB President Draghi’s Speech
GBP UK Prime Minister Theresa May speech
