Japanese GDP
Continuing Worry about China’s Economy and an Equivocal Remark from the President of the N.Y. Federal Reserve
September 8, 2023
Equities fell on Friday by 1.3% in Hong Kong, 1.2% in Japan, 0.8% in New Zealand, 0.4% in Indonesia, and 0.2% in China. Japanese GDP growth between the first and second quarters was revised downward from 6.0% at an annualized rate to 4.8%. Compared to 2Q 2022, however, GDP rose just 1.6%, little better than […] More
Several Significant Developments for Investors to Process
August 15, 2023
Chinese July data have deepened concerns about the world’s second largest economy. Weaker-than-anticipated on-year growth in China’s retail sales of 2.5% was down from 8.2% in the first half of 2023. Industrial production growth of 3.7% year-on-year also undershot expectations. The unemployment rate edged up to a 4-month high of 5.3%, and fixed asset investment […] More
Japanese and Euroland GDP Reported… Also Monetary Policy Decisions in India and Serbia
June 8, 2023
The dollar slipped further overnight, losing 0.5% against the Australian dollar, 0.4% versus the kiwi, 0.3% relative to the yen and euro, and 0.2% against the Swiss franc and sterling. One currency that fell against the dollar was the Turkish lira, which dropped 0.4% additionally. With both the European Central Bank and possibly the Federal […] More
Investors More Hopeful Than Yesterday about Debt Ceiling Talks
May 17, 2023
The dollar rose overnight by 0.8% against the Mexican peso, 0.6% versus the Japanese yen and Swiss franc, and 0.4% relative to the euro. The Japanese Nikkei closed up 0.8%, but share prices in Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, India and Australia closed lower. Continental European equities are slightly higher, and so are the DOW […] More
Concern about European Economic Outlook Mounting
September 8, 2022
The record 75 basis point increase in European Central Bank interest rates failed to lift the euro, which continues to trade below dollar parity. Europe’s economy is more exposed than others to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Britain’s new prime minister, Liz Truss, has imposed an emergency freeze on gas and electricity rates. The weighted dollar […] More
Dollar Up Amid Weaker-Than-Forecast Data Around the World
August 15, 2022
The weighted DXY dollar index is up 0.6% and near its overnight highs. Gains compared to Friday closing levels have been even higher relative to the Canadian dollar (1.0%), New Zealand dollar (1.3%), Australian dollar (1.2%) and Mexican peso (0.7%). The dollar has risen 0.6% vis-a-vis the euro, 0.5% versus sterling and 0.4%relative to the […] More
Risk Aversion Returns
May 18, 2022
It’s not surprising that the investor move back into riskier assets over the prior three sessions proved to be short-lived because the reasons behind this year slide in equities and rise of the dollar hadn’t disappeared. The three main U.S. stock market indices are down 0.5-1.0% in futures trading. Smaller dips have occurred in Europe. […] 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
The Fact of Inflation Persistence is More Certain than Russia’s Claim to Be Partially Pulling Troops Back from the Russian Border
February 15, 2022
Stock markets rebounded Tuesday on reports out of Russia that some military forces at the border with Ukraine will be pulled back. President Putin’s real intentions remain to be seen. Nonetheless, Putin wasn’t expected to flinch, so the unexpected nature of his action triggered an initial sigh of relief from investors. Prices of WTI oil […] More
Equities Depressed by Unsettling Monday News on Several Fronts
August 16, 2021
Afghanistan’s government fell to the Taliban in three days, not three months as the U.S. intelligence community had presumed. Washington’s lame attempt to differentiate the fall of Kabul from that of Saigon 46 years earlier is hardly persuading anyone, even among supporters of the Biden Administration. Covid developments over the weekend continued to spiral backwards, […] More
