Market Roundup
•US Indexes: Dow up 0.1%, S&P 500 up 0.2%, Nasdaq up 0.2%
•US Initial Jobless Claims 250K,265K forecast, 262K previous
•US Continuing Jobless Claims 1,437K,1,438K forecast, 1,428K previous
•US Jobless Claims 4-Week Avg 246.75K , 252.00K previous
•Canada Jul IPPI (MoM) -2.1%,-1.1% previous
•US Aug Philly Fed CAPEX Index 18.00, 4.40 previous
• US Aug Philly Fed Prices Paid 43.60,52.20 previous
• US Aug Philly Fed New Orders -5.1, -24.8 previous
• US Aug Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index 6.2, -5.0 forecast, -12.3 previous
•US Jul Existing Home Sales 4.81M, 4.89M forecast, 5.12M previous
•US Jul Existing Home Sales (MoM) -5.9%, -5.4% previous
•US Jul Leading Index (MoM) -0.4%,-0.5% forecast, -0.8% previous
•US Natural Gas Storage 18B,34B forecast, 44B previous
Looking Ahead – Economic data (GMT)
•03:00 New Zeeland Credit Card Spending (YoY) 3.5% previous
Looking Ahead - Events, Other Releases (GMT)
•No significant events
Currency Summaries
EUR/USD: The euro dipped against dollar on Thursday as comments from the Fed officials reaffirming the need for further rate hikes boosted dollar. The Fed needs to keep raising borrowing costs to bring high inflation under control, a string of U.S. central bank officials said on Thursday, even as they debated how fast and how high to lift them. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said he is leaning toward supporting a third straight 75-basis-point interest rate hike in September. The dollar index was last up 0.71% at 107.39, after reaching 107.57, the highest since July 19.The euro reached $1.0078, the weakest since July 18. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.0182(30DMA), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.0215(38.2%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.0161(50%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 1.0094(61.8%fib).
GBP/USD: The British pound weakened against the dollar on Thursday after policy minutes from the Federal Reserve boosted the U.S. currency and traders worried soaring UK inflation would mean higher interest rates and a weaker British economy.The latest inflation figures, which were released on Wednesday and came in above 10%, increase pressure on the Bank of England (BoE) to bring down prices and also ramp up fears of a sharp economic slowdown. The pound was down 0.1% against the dollar at $1.204 and earlier fell to $1.1995. Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.2053(30DMA), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.2138(38.2%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.1921(23.6%fib),a break below could take the pair towards 1.1767(July 14th low).
USD/CAD : The Canadian dollar weakened to its lowest level in nearly two weeks against its U.S. counterpart on Thursday as comments by Federal Reserve officials on the outlook for interest rates bolstered the greenback against a basket of major currencies. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard was reported to have said he is leaning towards a 75 basis points hike next month, while San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly said that raising rates by either 50 or 75 basis points would be reasonable. The loonie was trading 0.2% lower at 1.2940 to the greenback, after touching its weakest since Aug. 5 at 1.2966 .Immediate resistance can be seen at 1.2956(38.2%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 1.3026 (23.6%fib).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 1.2903 (50%fib), a break below could take the pair towards 1.2866 (14DMA).
USD/JPY: The dollar steadied against yen on Thursday as string of Fed officials, including St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly, reiterated on Thursday that the U.S. central bank needs to keep raising interest rates to rein in inflation. Data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week and the prior period's data was revised sharply lower, while a separate report from the Philadelphia Fed on Thursday revealed a measure of employment at factories in the Mid-Atlantic region surged in August. The dollar gained to 135.90 against the yen , the weakest level for the Japanese currency since July 28.Strong resistance can be seen at 136.12(23.6%fib), an upside break can trigger rise towards 137.00(Psychological level).On the downside, immediate support is seen at 135.15(38.2 %fib), a break below could take the pair towards 134.45 (11DMA).
Equities Recap
European stocks closed higher on Thursday after a choppy session as investors stayed largely cautious after the Fed minutes said the central bank will continue raising interest rates in the coming months in order to combat inflation.
UK's benchmark FTSE 100 closed up by 0.35 percent, Germany's Dax ended up by 0.53 percent, France’s CAC finished the day up by 0.45 percent.
Wall Street’s main indexes closed lower on Monday as investors took some profits after last weeks’ record levels while they waited for earnings season to begin and eyed events in Washington with trepidation.
Dow Jones closed down by 0.06% percent, S&P 500 closed by 0.23% percent, Nasdaq settled up by 0.21% percent.
Treasuries Recap.
U.S. Treasury yields ticked lower on Thursday on the back of Wednesday's release of the U.S. Federal Reserve's July meeting minutes that some investors saw as confirming a less aggressive stance in the central bank's fight against inflation.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were down slightly at 2.878% while two-year note yields were down by about six basis points on the day, at 3.235%.
Commodities Recap
Gold prices eased on Thursday under pressure from a firmer dollar although losses were capped by a dip in Treasury yields, while investors looked for more economic cues that could influence rate hikes.
Spot gold fell 0.2% to $1,758.42 per ounce by 2:18 p.m. EDT (1818 GMT), having slipped to $1,759.17 on Wednesday, its lowest since Aug. 3. U.S. gold futures settled down 0.3% at $1,771.2 per ounce.
Oil prices gained about 3% on Thursday as positive U.S. economic data and robust U.S. fuel consumption offset concerns that slowing economic growth in other countries could undercut demand.
Brent futures rose $2.94, or 3.1%, to settle at $96.59 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $2.39, or 2.7%, to settle at $90.50.
