South Korea’s Weak Won Struggles as Retail Investors Pour Money Into U.S. Stocks 
RBI Holds Repo Rate at 5.25% as India’s Growth Outlook Strengthens After U.S. Trade Deal 
Fed Governor Lisa Cook Warns Inflation Risks Remain as Rates Stay Steady 
Trump Endorses Japan’s Sanae Takaichi Ahead of Crucial Election Amid Market and China Tensions 
Trump’s Inflation Claims Clash With Voters’ Cost-of-Living Reality 
Gold Prices Slide Below $5,000 as Strong Dollar and Central Bank Outlook Weigh on Metals 
Silver Prices Plunge in Asian Trade as Dollar Strength Triggers Fresh Precious Metals Sell-Off 
Asian Stocks Slip as Tech Rout Deepens, Japan Steadies Ahead of Election 
China Extends Gold Buying Streak as Reserves Surge Despite Volatile Prices 
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record 
Dow Hits 50,000 as U.S. Stocks Stage Strong Rebound Amid AI Volatility 
Dollar Near Two-Week High as Stock Rout, AI Concerns and Global Events Drive Market Volatility 
Australian government bonds slumped on the last trading day of this week following weakness in the U.S. Treasuries on speculation that the new Federal Reserve Chair will be hawkish.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to its price, rose 1 basis point to 2.461 percent, the yield on the long-term 30-year note also jumped 1 basis point to 2.970 percent and the yield on short-term 2-year traded nearly 1 basis point higher at 1.627 percent by 02:30 GMT.
Treasuries saw rangebound activity during a relatively quiet session light on data of great significance. With respect to data flow, markets received a +10k increase in initial jobless claims to 233k, followed later by an unchanged m/m reading from pending home sales for September (keeping the series at its lowest level since January 2015, though continuing to reflect better than average activity in the housing).
Overnight news flow saw more winnowing of Fed Chair candidates, highlighted by the elimination of NEC Director Gary Cohn, former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh and current Fed Chair Janet Yellen from consideration, tightening the race to a battle between Fed Governor Powell and John Taylor.
On the other hand, the U.S. Treasury yields inched higher in choppy trading, undermined by a soft auction of U.S. 7-year notes which saw demand at its weakest since August last year. The U.S. 7-year note was sold at 2.280 percent, higher than the expected yield at the bid deadline. The yield was the highest seen at an auction for this debt maturity since January, Reuters reported.
Markets now look ahead to a greater flow of data to finish off the week on Friday, highlighted by advance third-quarter GDP and University of Michigan consumer sentiment releases.
Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 index traded 0.14% lower at 5,902.5 by 02:30 GMT, while at 02:00GMT, the FxWirePro's Hourly AUD Strength Index remained neutral at -63.01 (a reading above +75 indicates a bullish trend, while that below -75 a bearish trend). For more details, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex
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