Market Roundup
- Moody's lowers outlook on Australia banks to negative.
- Sluggish profit growth, strong lending competition, prob loans et al cited, follows similar move by S&P in July.
- Japan manufacturers' mood at lowest since 2013.
- Tankan - Japan manufacturers Index +1 In August Vs +3 In July.
- Tankan - Japan non-manufacturers index +18 in August vs +15 in July.
- Tankan - Japan manufacturers Nov index seen at +6, non-manufacturers +19.
- Fed's Williams (non-voter) says September rate hike makes sense.
- PBOC sets Yuan mid-point at 6.6211 / dlr vs last close 6.6335.
- China foreign trade faces very large downwards pressure - commerce ministry official.
Economic Data Ahead
- (0430 ET/0830 GMT) UK Public sector finances for July.
Key Events Ahead
- No key events scheduled for the day.
FX Recap
USD: The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was last down 0.58 percent at 94.170 after touching a nearly eight-week low of 94.141. The U.S. dollar hit its lowest level against the euro in nearly eight weeks and an eight-week low against the Swiss franc on Thursday, a day after minutes from the Federal Reserve's July meeting showed a bias among policymakers against raising interest rates soon.
EUR/USD: The euro hit a session high of $1.1356. The Intraday bias remains bearish till the time pair holds key resistance at 1.1366 levels. A sustained break above $1.1427 will drag the parity up towards key resistances at $1.1529/$1.1622/$1.1785 and $1.1833 marks. Key supports are seen at $1.1283/$1.1215/$1.1152.
USD/JPY: The yen firmed 0.4 percent to 99.64 yen per dollar, coming within sight of its seven-week peak of 99.55 to the dollar set on Tuesday. A break there would open the way for a test of its 2 1/2 year high of 99.00 to the dollar touched on June 24, 2016. Major support and resistance levels are seen at 98.78 and 101.92 marks respectively.
GBP/USD: The pound slightly lower on the Friday and trading around $1.3144 mark. Intraday bias slightly bearish till the time pair holds key resistance at $1.3185 marks. Major support and resistance levels are seen at $1.2873 and $1.3341 levels.
AUD/USD: The Australian dollar dropped 0.7 percent to $0.7632, pulling away from a recent three-week peak of $0.7760. Support was found at $0.7608. Resistance was found at a major retracement of $0.7724.
NZD/USD: The Kiwi shed half a U.S. cent to $0.7255, having touched a 14-month peak of $0.7351 last week. It has met strong resistance around the $0.7300 level and was up 0.7 percent for the week. A sustained close above $0.7297 will drag the parity higher towards key resistance around $0.7338, $0.7367 and $0.7494 levels. Initial support level is seen at $0.7165.
Equities Recap
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was trading 0.29 percent higher at 16,534.42 points.
South Korea’s Kospi was trading around 0.13 percent lower at 2,053.11 points.
Shanghai composite index to open down 0.1 pct at 3,100.39 points and China's CSI300 index to open down 0.2 pct at 3,358.56 points.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng was trading 0.32 percent lower at 22,949.14 points.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was trading 0.23 percent higher at 5,519.10 points.
Commodities Recap
Brent crude oil prices dipped in early Asian trading hours on Friday, but remained near two-month highs with Brent still holding above $50 per barrel in a bull-run that has lifted the market by over 20 percent since early August. International benchmark Brent crude oil futures were trading at $50.80 per barrel at 0056 GMT, down 9 cents from their last close.
Gold fell for the first time in five sessions early on Friday as hawkish comments from U.S. Federal Reserve officials renewed bets on a U.S. rate hike this year. Spot gold was down 0.3 percent at $1,348.26 an ounce at 0103 GMT.
Treasuries Recap
New Zealand government bonds eased, sending yields 2 basis points higher at the long end of the curve.
Australian government bond futures were quiet, with the three-year bond contract steady at 98.630. The 10-year contract edged down half a tick to 98.1150, while the 20-year contract was added half a tick to 97.5900.
10-year U.S. treasury yield was at 1.542 percent vs U.S. close of 1.536 percent on Thursday.
