Market Roundup
• French 12-Month BTF Auction 2.098%, 2.116% previous
• French 3-Month BTF Auction 2.026%, 2.043% previous
• French 6-Month BTF Auction 2.068%, 2.060% previous
• US CB Employment Trends Index (Dec) 104.27,105.80 previous
• US 3-Month Bill Auction 3.609%,3.540% previous
• US 6-Month Bill Auction 3.490%, 3.475% previous
Looking Ahead Economic Data (GMT)
•23:30 Australia Westpac Consumer Sentiment (Jan) -9.0% previous
•23:50 Japan Current Account n.s.a. (Nov) 3.594T forecast, 2.834T previous
•23:50 Japan Adjusted Current Account (Nov) 3.04T forecast, 2.48T previous
•23:50 Japan Bank Lending (YoY) (Dec) 4.1% forecast, 4.2% previous
Looking Ahead Events And Other Releases (GMT)
•No Events Ahead
Currency Forecast
EUR/USD : The euro rallied against the dollar after the Trump administration threatened Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell with a criminal indictment, a move that could endanger the greenback's safe-haven status. Powell said the Department of Justice had served the Fed with grand jury subpoenas, threatening a criminal indictment related to his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last June. Geopolitical tensions also simmered, with unrest in Iran, developments in Venezuela and Trump's threat to acquire Greenland. The single currency rose 0.41% to 1.1684 in its biggest daily rise since December 10. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.1688(50%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.1730(SMA20).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.1623(Lower BB), a break below could take the pair towards 1.1601(61.8%fib).
GBP/USD: Sterling strengthened on Monday as the U.S. dollar weakened amid renewed turmoil surrounding Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who said the Trump administration had threatened him with a criminal indictment over congressional testimony he delivered last summer. The move has escalated a long-running feud between the White House and the central bank, reviving concerns about the Federal Reserve’s independence and sparking speculation that any future Fed chair could be more politically compliant. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.3469(38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.3559(Higher BB).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.3355(50%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 1.3342(Lower BB).
USD/CAD: The Canadian dollar recovered some recent losses against the U.S. dollar on Monday as renewed concerns over Federal Reserve independence weighed on the greenback. The dollar slid after the Justice Department threatened to indict Fed Chair Jerome Powell over his congressional comments on a building renovation, a move Powell called a pretext to influence interest rates.The price of oil was trading 0.2% higher at $59.25 a barrel as investors weighed anti-government demonstrations in major oil producer Iran.The loonie was trading 0.3% higher at 1.3875 per U.S. dollar, after trading in a range of 1.3868 to 1.3917. On Friday, the currency touched a five-week low at 1.3920.. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.3776 (38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.3880 (50%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.3649(23.6%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 1.3623(Lower BB).
USD/JPY: The U.S. dollar edged higher against the yen on Monday as renewed political tensions in Japan weighed on the yen. the coalition partner of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's party said on Sunday she might hold a snap election in February in a bid to capitalize on her strong public approval ratings since taking office in October. The vote would mark Takaichi’s first test with voters, giving Japan’s first female leader a chance to capitalise on strong approval ratings since October. Takaichi also said she had instructed ministers to ensure timely execution of the current fiscal year’s supplementary budget and secure approval for next year’s budget. Attention now turns to key economic data due this week, including the current account, machine tool orders, producer inflation and business sentiment surveys. Immediate resistance can be seen at 158.12(23.6%fib) an upside break can trigger rise towards 158.72(Higher BB) .On the downside, immediate support is seen at 156.78(SMA20) a break below could take the pair towards 155.85 (38.2%fib).
Equities Recap
European shares closed at a record high on Monday, though gains were modest as threats by the U.S. government to indict Fed Chair Jerome Powell revived concerns over central bank independence.
UK's benchmark FTSE 100 closed up by 0.16 percent, Germany's Dax ended up by 0.57 percent, France’s CAC finished the day down by 0.04 percent.
U.S. stocks finished at record levels on Monday, with the S&P 500 and Dow lifted by technology shares and Walmart, as markets mostly brushed aside worries about a criminal investigation into Jerome Powell.
Dow Jones closed down by 0.17 % percent, S&P 500 closed up by 0.16 % percent, Nasdaq settled up by 0.26% percent
Commodities Recap
Oil prices climbed and settled at seven-week highs on Monday on worries that Iran's exports could decline as the sanctioned OPEC member cracks down on anti-government demonstrations.
Brent futures rose 53 cents, or 0.8% to settle at $63.87 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 38 cents, or 0.6%, to settle at $59.50.
Gold hit a record high above $4,600 an ounce during the session but retreated to last be seen 1.84% higher at $4,592.55.
