ASIA:
China has told the US, the UK and Australia to abandon their “cold war” mentality or risk harming their own interests after the three countries unveiled a new defence cooperation pact. The trilateral security partnership, named Aukus, was announced on Thursday by the three nations’ leaders via video link, and will include an 18-month plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Zhao Lijian, said the US and UK’s decision to export highly sensitive nuclear-powered submarine technology to Australia was a case of “extremely irresponsible” double standards.
The major Asian stock markets had a mixed day today:
- NIKKEI 225 decreased 188.37 points or -0.62% to 30,323.34
- Shanghai decreased 49.13 points or -1.34% to 3,607.09
- Hang Seng decreased 365.36 or -1.46% to 24,667.85
- ASX 200 increased 43.20 points or 0.58% to 7,460.20
- Kospi decreased 23.31 points or -0.74% to 3,130.09
- SENSEX increased 417.96 points or 0.71% to 59,141.16
- Nifty50 increased 110.05 points or 0.63% to 17,629.50
The major Asian currency markets had a mixed day today:
- AUDUSD decreased 0.00530 or -0.72% to 0.72862
- NZDUSD decreased 0.00590 or -0.82% to 0.70691
- USDJPY increased 0.39200 or 0.36% to 109.71
- USDCNY increased 0.02540 or 0.39% to 6.45233
Precious Metals:
- Gold decreased 36.62 USD/t oz. or -2.04% to 1,755.97
- Silver decreased 0.9885 USD/t. oz or -4.15% to 22.831
Some economic news from last night:
Japan:
Adjusted Trade Balance decreased from -0.01T to -0.27T
Exports (YoY) (Aug) decreased from 37.0% to 26.2%
Foreign Bonds Buying increased from 1,043.2B to 1,761.4B
Foreign Investments in Japanese Stocks decreased from 422.8B to 128.7B
Imports (YoY) (Aug) increased from 28.5% to 44.7%
Trade Balance (Aug) decreased from 439.4B to -635.4B
Australia:
MI Inflation Expectations increased from 3.3% to 4.4%
Employment Change (Aug) decreased from 2.2K to -146.3K
Full Employment Change (Aug) decreased from -4.2K to -68.0K
Participation Rate (Aug) decreased from 66.0% to 65.2%
Unemployment Rate (Aug) decreased from 4.6% to 4.5%
New Zealand:
RBNZ Offshore Holdings (Aug) increased from 46.60% to 47.70%
GDP (QoQ) (Q2) increased from 1.4% to 2.8%
GDP (YoY) (Q2) increased from 2.9% to 17.4%
GDP Annual Average (Q2) increased from -1.4% to 5.1%
GDP Expenditure (QoQ) (Q2) increased from 1.4% to 2.6%
Some economic news from today:
China:
FDI (Aug) decreased from 25.50% to 22.30%
Hong Kong:
Unemployment Rate (Aug) decreased from 5.0% to 4.7%
Australia
HIA New Home Sales (MoM) increased from -20.5% to 5.8%
EUROPE/EMEA:
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said on Tuesday Banks should hold their nerve in the face of European Union pressure to shift euro derivatives clearing from London to the bloc. Since Britain fully left the EU last December, the bloc has asked banks to move euro clearing from London, which accounts for the bulk of activity, to Frankfurt. Bailey said banks were waiting rather than shifting euro positions as a June 2022 deadline looms when temporary permission for London clearers to serve EU customers ends.
The major Europe stock markets had a green day:
- CAC 40 increased 38.97 points or 0.59% to 6,622.59
- FTSE 100 increased 10.99 points or 0.16% to 7,027.48
- DAX 30 increased 35.75 points or 0.23% to 15,651.75
The major Europe currency markets had a mixed day today:
- EURUSD decreased 0.00640 or -0.54% to 1.17549
- GBPUSD decreased 0.00670 or -0.48% to 1.37798
- USDCHF increased 0.00710 or 0.78% to 0.92675
Some economic news from Europe today:
UK:
Car Registration (MoM) (Jul) decreased from 18.8% to -33.8%
Car Registration (YoY) (Jul) decreased from 28.0% to -29.5%
Italy:
Italian Car Registration (MoM) (Jul) decreased from 4.7% to -26.1%
Italian Car Registration (YoY) (Jul) decreased from 12.6% to -19.2%
Italian Trade Balance (Jul) increased from 5.673B to 8.762B
Italian Trade Balance EU (Jul) increased from 0.87B to 1.91B
Italian Trade Balance Non-EU (Jul) increased from 4.79B to 6.85B
Germany:
German Car Registration (MoM) (Jul) decreased from 18.9% to -13.8%
German Car Registration (YoY) (Jul) decreased from 24.5% to -24.9%
France:
French Car Registration (MoM) (Jul) decreased from 41.5% to -42.0%
French Car Registration (YoY) (Jul) decreased from -14.7% to -35.3%
Euro Zone:
Trade Balance (Jul) increased from 17.7B to 20.7B
US/AMERICAS:
The Census Bureau released a strong retail sales report before trading began this Thursday. Sales in the US rose 0.7% in August, despite analysts anticipating a -0.8% decline. The figure would be more pronounced if not for the -3.6% declined in auto sales due to the global semi-chip conductor and labor shortages. Excluding the automotive sector, sales rose 1.8% last month, a jump from the anticipated 0.1% gain. American consumers continued to favor shopping at online retail stores (up 5.3%), while furniture sales rose 3.7%, and general merchandise rose 3.5%. The overall numbers for August represent a 15.1% YoY increase in activity.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has ordered an ethics investigation after it was noted that multiple Fed presidents profited from potential insider trading during the pandemic. Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren raised the alarm after demanding that Fed presidents be prohibited from trading individual stock as their policies could change based on their personal benefit. A representative for Powell said that the review is necessary “because the trust of the American people is essential for the Federal Reserve to effectively carry out our important mission.” Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren was found to hold stock in Pfizer as well as four real estate investment trusts. Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan earned over $1 million last year trading individual stocks such as Amazon and Delta Air Lines. The investigation will likely result in new rules to the Reserve Bank Code of Conduct.
US Market Closings:
- Dow declined 63.07 points or -0.18% to 34,751.32
- S&P 500 declined 6.95 points or -0.16% to 4,473.75
- Nasdaq advanced 20.4 points or 0.13% to 15,181.92
- Russell 2000 declined 1.54 points or -0.07% to 2,232.91
Canada Market Closings:
- TSX Composite declined 91.69 points or -0.44% to 20,602.1
- TSX 60 declined 5.3 points or -0.43% to 1,231.76
Brazil Market Closing:
- Bovespa declined 1,268.26 points or -1.1% to 113,794.28
ENERGY:
The oil markets had a mixed day today:
- Crude Oil increased 0.13 USD/BBL or 0.18% to 72.7300
- Brent increased 0.22 USD/BBL or 0.29% to 75.6800
- Natural gas decreased 0.185 USD/MMBtu or -3.39% to 5.2740
- Gasoline decreased 0.0205 USD/GAL or -0.93% to 2.1861
- Heating oil increased 0.0052 USD/GAL or 0.24% to 2.2105
The above data was collected around 14:23 EST on Thursday
- Top commodity gainers: Oat (1.58%) and Steel (2.58%), Lean Hogs (3.56%) and Methanol (2.98%)
- Top commodity losers: Rhodium (-4.66%), Natural Gas (-3.39%), Copper (-3.26%), and Silver (-4.15%)
The above data was collected around 14:29 EST on Thursday.
BONDS:
Japan 0.05%(+1.5bp), US 2’s 0.22%(+0.008%), US 10’s 1.3293%(+2.54bps); US 30’s 1.88%(+0.018%),Bunds -0.3030% (+0.5bp), France 0.0260% (+0.2bp), Italy 0.6954% (-0.43bp), Turkey 16.44% (-4bp), Greece 0.7900% (+0.90bp), Portugal 0.263% (+1.90bp); Spain 0.356% (+0.91bp) and UK Gilts 0.810% (+3.1bp).
