BOJ Rate Hike Expected to Boost Yen, Impact USD/JPY and Nikkei 
Wall Street Surges as US-Iran Deal Eases Oil Price and Inflation Concerns 
Oil Prices Ease as Markets Weigh U.S.-Iran Peace Deal and Strait of Hormuz Reopening 
Taiwan Central Bank Likely to Keep Interest Rates Unchanged Through 2027 
China Industrial Output Beats Forecasts as Domestic Demand Weakens 
Gold Prices Surge Above $4,300 as US-Iran Peace Deal Weakens Dollar and Oil 
Global EV Sales Rise for Third Consecutive Month in May Despite Regional Market Challenges 
Gold Holds Gains as Oil Prices Retreat and Fed Decision Looms 
Japan Trade Deficit Narrows as Exports Surge in May 
North Korea Reports Industrial Output at 105% of Target Following Party Congress 
Oil Prices Recover Slightly as U.S. Crude Inventories Fall, But Iran Deal Caps Gains 
ASX Proposes New Share Dilution Limits for Public Takeovers 
Asian Currencies Steady as Dollar Holds Firm Ahead of Fed Decision and US-Iran Deal Details 
Dollar Slips as U.S.-Iran Peace Deal Boosts Risk Appetite and Pressures Safe-Haven Demand 
The USD/RUB currency pair is expected to rise towards the 70.00 mark over the coming quarter, with further likelihood of a 25 basis points hike from the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) at its December meeting, but this could be the last in this cycle, according to the latest research report from Commerzbank.
The OPEC+ group is still negotiating an agreement among members to cut oil production and support the oil price. The final details are yet to be agreed, but in case output is cut back, this will be negative for the Russian economy.
Russian growth had begun to perk up in Q3 after OPEC+ had agreed to increase output and Russia began to produce 200k bbl/day more (this, however, only partly made up for a 300k bbl/day production cut implemented since last year).
Unfortunately, the acceleration of growth during Q3 was offset by a setback in the agricultural sector and the economy lost its chance to get on a faster growth path. Now, the boost from that earlier agreement is set to be reversed.
Further, the price of oil is unlikely to rise back to the Q3 level regardless of such output cut – which means that both price and quantity will be lower over the coming quarter, which will depress the economy, the report added.
"Our 2018 growth forecast for Russia is a sub-consensus 1.5 percent vs. official forecasts in the 2 percent range. One potential positive from the lower oil price, though, is that inflation, which was beginning to approach the 4 percent target may begin to cool off (yesterday's November CPI data showed 3.8 percent headline and 3.4 percent core inflation)," Commerzbank further commented.
