European Stocks Steady as U.S.-Iran War, Euro Zone Data Keep Investors Cautious 
Asian Stocks Rise as AI Chip Rally Lifts South Korea, Japan 
Oil Prices Fall as U.S. Crude Inventories Surge and Hormuz Tensions Persist 
S&P 500 Retreats From Record High as AI Stocks Slide, Retail Sales Disappoint 
Gold Prices Retreat From Two-Month High as Softer Inflation Eases Fed Rate Hike Bets 
Best Gold Stocks to Buy Now: AABB, GOLD, GDX 
European Stocks Rise as U.S. Inflation Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Fears 
US Dollar Slips as Softer PPI Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Expectations 
France Inflation Rises 2.4% in July as Consumer Prices Increase 
Trump Imposes New US Tariffs on Drone Imports Over National Security Concerns 
FxWirePro: Daily Commodity Tracker - 21st March, 2022 
Wall Street Hits Record High as Softer Inflation Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Fears 
US Dollar Holds Firm as Fed Outlook and Iran Tensions Keep Markets on Edge 
Add as a preferred source on Google
Australian short-term government bonds gained Wednesday after third-quarter consumer price inflation missed expectations, remaining below the Reserve Bank of Australia’s target band of 2-3 percent. In addition, investors poured into safe-haven assets following weakness in the riskier assets.
The yield on short-term 2-year fell 3 basis points to 1.901 percent, 3-year bond yields also slid 3 basis points to 2.062 percent and 1-year note yield declined 2-1/2 basis points to 1.804. On the other hand, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to its price, remained steady at 2.778 percent, the yield on the long-term 30-year note held steady at 3.538 percent by 02:40GMT.
In the quarter the CPI rose 0.6 percent for an annual pace of 1.8 percent y/y while the average of the core measures rose 0.4 percent q/q (1.9% y/y). The ABS analysis also points to significant seasonality in the September quarter CPI with the seasonally adjusted estimate rising 0.4%qtr which, which was some 0.2 percentage points lower than the headline estimate and bang on Westpac’s forecast.
Broadly speaking the Australian economy appears to be locked in a low inflation environment where there are some sectors experiencing modest inflation, particularly around housing and health, but being mostly offset by deflationary pressure due to the competitive squeeze in consumer goods. At the stage we struggle to find any broad cyclical upswing in prices that you would normally expect to see at this stage of the economic recovery.
Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.19 percent to 5,884.50 by 02:40 GMT, while at 02:00GMT, the FxWirePro's Hourly AUD Strength Index remained neutral at -36.58 (a reading above +75 indicates a bullish trend, while that below -75 a bearish trend). For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex
FxWirePro launches Absolute Return Managed Program. For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/invest
