Trump
More Surprises
January 3, 2017
German inflation accelerated sharply in December. The Chinese manufacturing purchasing managers index compiled by Caixin rose a full point to a 47-month high of 51.9 in December. The production subindex reached its best level since January 2011. A Kuwaiti decision to reduce oil production sent WTI crude up 2.1% to $54.87 per barrel, highest since […] More
Solidarity of Oil Producers Lifts Oil Prices by More Than 4.0%
December 12, 2016
The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil leaped 4.2% to $53.68 per barrel. At a meeting on Saturday, the Saudis showed a readiness to cut production even more than agreed previously, and non-cartel producers are supporting the effort to reduce global output and lift the price of oil. This oil news has reinforced the […] More
Euroland Stocks Rally and Oil Retreats Further
December 7, 2016
The ECB Governing Council, which meets tomorrow and is scheduled to release new forecasts, is widely expected to unveil an extension of planned asset purchases beyond March 2017, the current termination date of the program. Stock markets are up today in Europe by 2.9% in Greece, 1.6% in Germany, 1.5% in the U.K., 1.8% in […] More
Markets React to U.K. July PMI Figures but Hardly to Trump’s Speech
July 22, 2016
Britain’s composite purchasing managers index swung from 52.4 in June to an 87-month low of 47.7 in July. Service sector activity (49.1) contracted at the fastest pace in 41 months, while services did even worse, falling at the most rapid rate in 88 months with a reading of 47.4. Sterling’s post-Brexit slump sent input prices […] More
Trump Takes Giant Step Closer to Being America’s 45th President
May 4, 2016
Ted Cruz dropped out of the Republican race after losing to Donald Trump by a landslide margin in the Indiana primary. The Democratic race is not over, by contrast, as Sanders unexpectedly beat Clinton in Indiana. While Clinton leads by a big margin in the delegate count, she will be drawing criticism from both the […] More
FOMC Day and an Australian Data Surprise
April 27, 2016
The Federal Open Market Committee will release a statement at 14:00 EDT (18:00 GMT) on the results of its third policy meeting of 2016. The federal funds rate is not expected to change, and attention will be focused on comments regarding U.S. economic conditions and likely prospects for clues to the timing of the next […] More
It’s U.S. February Jobs Day
March 4, 2016
Markets await U.S. employment and trade data, which get released at 08:30 EST (13:30 GMT). Canada reports trade and labor productivity. Meanwhile, in the marketplace, the dollar has slipped 0.5% against the kiwi, 0.4% versus the Aussie dollar, 0.3% against the yuan and 0.2% relative to the euro. The dollar has alternatively risen 0.2% against […] More
Markets Step Closer to the Abyss
January 15, 2016
West Texas Intermediate oil plunged 4.7% overnight on signs that sanctions against Iranian exports will be lifted next week, boosting world supply. Commodity-sensitive currencies like the Aussie and New Zealand dollars (down 1.7% each) and the Canadian dollar (off 0.9% against its U.S. counterpart) fell sharply overnight. China’s Shanghai composite index sank 3.6%, bringing its […] More
A Fearful Start to the New Year
January 4, 2016
China’s stock market was halted automatically after a 7% plunge. The yuan fell 0.7% and is 5.0% weaker against the dollar than its opening level of 2014. China’s manufacturing purchasing managers index dropped 0.4 points to 48.2, a three-month low and fifth consecutive sub-50 reading in a row. Such scores indicate a contraction of factory-sector […] More
