Chinese CPI and PPI
Another Weak Round of Chinese Price Data
July 10, 2023
Sharp moves last Friday in equities (down) and the dollar (up) have been only marginally reversed this morning. Share prices in the Pacific Rim closed up 0.6% in Hong Kong and 0.2% in China and Indonesia but dropped 0.6% in Japan and 0.5% in Australia. The German, French and Italian stock exchanges are up 0.6% […] More
Little Market Reaction to Trump’s Indictment on Mishandling Classified Documents
June 9, 2023
The story of former U.S President Trump’s second indictment on criminal charges broke late yesterday. This development is unlikely to damage his prohibitive opinion poll lead among Republican candidates for that party’s presidential nomination next year, nor has it impacted financial markets, which are now awaiting important cues next week from central banks meeting in […] More
Lower Inflation But Spreading Troubles for Regional Banks
May 11, 2023
Investors remain edgy. PacWest is the latest bank to report a big exodus of deposits. Disney stock dropped sharply. The standoff in the debt ceiling talks hasn’t shown any sign of cracking. Equities closed down 0.8% in China, Indonesia, Taiwan and Australia. The German Dax and Dow Jones Industrials are also off 0.8% so far […] More
Equities and Dollar Slip, Japanese Growth Revised Lower
March 9, 2023
With Fed Chairman Powell’s two-day testimony over and the Beige Book published, the dollar fell overnight by 0.7% against the yen, 0.3% versus the Swiss franc, kiwi, Aussie dollar and sterling and 0.2% relative to the euro and Chinese yuan. Powell left scant doubt that multiple additional interest rate hikes like ahead, and the Fed’s […] More
Expectations of Further Disinflation Depress the Dollar to 7-Month Weighted Low
January 12, 2023
The dollar plunged 1.4% overnight against the Japanese yen and edged another 0.1% lower relative to the loonie and euro. The weighted DXY dollar index is hovering near its lowest levels since early June and around 10% below last year’s subsequent high. U.S. December CPI inflation figures, due in around 20 minutes, are widely projected […] More
The Morning After
November 9, 2022
The U.S. midterm elections had been among the most anticipated event of 2022 among financial market participants. What is known at this writing is that Republicans retook control of the House of Representatives and will have a seat majority of 25 or more. Control of the Senate remains uncertain, and composition has change little from […] More
Weeks’ End Finds Investors Willing to Take Some Risk
September 9, 2022
Early in the U.S. trading day, the rises in key U.S. stock market indices range from 0.5% in the DOW to 1.2% in the Nasdaq. Share prices in the Pacific Rim had closed up 2.7% in Hong Kong, 1.2% in Taiwan, 0.9% in Singapore, 0.8% in China, 0.7% in Australia and 0.5% in Japan, and […] More
Inflation Rising, Central Bankers Reacting, Dollar Firmer, and Equities Troubled
June 10, 2022
The dollar rose overnight by 0.4% against sterling and 0.2% relative to the euro, Swiss franc, and in weighted terms. The dollar alternatively dropped against the ruble, Australian and New Zealand dollars and Japanese yen. Following yesterday’s sharp drop in U.S. share prices, equities fell 1.5% in Japan, 1.3% in Indonesia and Australia, 1.6% in […] More
A Day of Bottom-Fishing
March 9, 2022
It’s been a rough period for financial market participants since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. After large rises in sovereign debt yields, commodity prices, and the dollar juxtaposed against steep drops in equities, investors this Wednesday have taken their cue from the price of oil and pulled back from recent extremes. At $120.80 per […] More
More Signs of Intensifying Inflation and Another Central Bank Rate Hike
November 10, 2021
The dollar didn’t move much right after U.S. CPI data were released but had already advanced by 0.0.4% overnight on a weighted basis before then to within 0.2% of its 52-week high. Dollar gains amounted to 0.5% against the kiwi and sterling, 0.4% relative to the euro and yen, and 0.3% vis-a-vis the Swiss franc […] More