·
In US, the Conference Board measure of consumer confidence eased
to 95.2 in April from 101.4. The initial boost to consumer confidence from
lower oil prices may be fading given their recent bounce.
·
The Richmond Fed survey in US also undershot market expectations,
at -3 (mkt: -2) in April. On the whole, the regional manufacturing surveys are
pointing to a further softening in Friday’s April ISM manufacturing survey.
·
US Case-Shiller house prices rose 0.9% m/m in February taking
the annual pace of growth to 5.0%, with the pace of growth slowing over the
past 9 months.
·
UK’s Q1 GDP growth was softer than expected, expanding at 0.3%
q/q (+0.5% mkt). The services sector expanded 0.5% q/q, the slowest pace of
growth since Q2 2013. Meanwhile, the construction (-1.6% q/q), production
(-0.1% q/q) and agricultural (-0.2% q/q) all declined.
·
In the currency market, the USD fell to an eight week low as
markets continued to pare long USD positions ahead of the FOMC meeting, while
US data were also soft. Sterling was initially dragged lower after weaker than
expected Q1 UK GDP data.
·
US Treasury yields rose ahead of the FOMC decision, with traders
bracing for a potential surprise from the Fed, with the 10-year yield up 8 bps
to 2%.
·
US stocks were up modestly in a volatile session of trading,
with the weaker USD and strong corporate earnings boosting
sentiment.
·
Crude oil prices ended higher, after spiking earlier in the day
after reports of Iranian armed forces seized a US ship. The Pentagon denied the
report and oil prices quickly eased. Trading this morning suggests a more
supportive bias for US WTI crude compared to Brent, likely in response to
weakness in the
USD.
Gold prices rose around 0.50% to USD1,212/oz, supported by a weaker USD.
Greater volatility is expected for gold futures ahead of the FOMC meeting, with
current 30-day volatility near the highest levels in seven weeks.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.