U.S. productivity and unit labor costs
Softer Dollar, Bitcoin and Oil Price; Mixed Equity Moves; and Lower Sovereign Debt Yields
June 4, 2026
Middle Eastern geopolitics continues to impact financial market activity in multiple ways. There is the guessing game about when an enduring ceasefire and will be reached, which pivots with each ensuing pronouncement from officials or rumor/news scoop that hits the wires. Seemingly lost in this focus on the timing of a deal is the reality […] More
Data Cyclone
December 10, 2024
This Tuesday was greeted with a heap of price and industrial production data, a downward revision to U.S. unit labor cost growth, Chinese trade figures, and central bank rate decisions in Australia and Armenia. The dollar strengthened overnight by 1.1-1.2% against the Australian and New Zealand currencies, 0.6% relative to the yen, and 0.4% versus […] More
More Japanese Intervention Suspected and General Relief that Powell Didn’t Put a Rate Hike More Explicitly in Play
May 2, 2024
Dollar/Yen fluctuated in a wide 1.3% trading range overnight. Japan’s Ministry of Finance is suspected of selling more foreign currency to support their currency. Intervention the other day is thought to have exceeded $20 billion. Published minutes today taken from the March Bank of Japan mid-March Board meeting express concern about the yen and voice […] More
Dollar Buoyed by Higher U.S. Long-Term Interest Rates and Reinvigorated Hawkish Fedspeak
March 2, 2023
In overnight action, the dollar advanced 0.6% against the euro, sterling, yuan and kiwi and by 0.5% relative to the yen and Australian dollar. At 4.07%, the ten-year U.S. Treasury yield has climbed 8 basis points today and 67 basis points over the four weeks since February 2nd. The Federal Reserve District presidents in Minnesota […] More
Investors Looking Ahead to Important Price Data
August 9, 2022
In market action overnight, The dollar marked time, sliding 0.3% against the euro, 0.2% on a weighted DXY basis, and 0.1% relative to the Swiss franc and peso. The dollar also edged up 0.2% against the Australian dollar and 0.1% versus the yen and Canadian dollar. U.S. stock futures fell around 0.3%. Major European bourses […] More
Equities and Dollar Steady but Pandemic Not Going Away
August 10, 2021
Covid trends keep worsening. U.S. daily cases hovering at 125k, and hospitalization and death rates are rising too. Global deaths closing in on 4-1/3 million, and a number of countries including China have tightened restrictions against social activities. Overnight dollar changes were mostly confined to a range of plus or minus 0.2%. Share prices Tuesday […] More
Lower Dollar
May 6, 2021
The dollar settled back 0.4% on a weighted basis and against the euro overnight. The dollar also lost 0.5% relative to the Swiss franc, 0.3% versus the loonie, and 0.1% relative to the New Zealand and Australian currencies. The dollar alternatively edged 0.1% higher against the peso and sterling and held steady on balance versus […] More
Risk Back Off after California Declares State of Emergency
March 5, 2020
Yesterday’s U.S. stock market rally extended into Pacific Rim trading hours overnight, with markets advancing 2.1% in Hong Kong, 2.0% in China and New Zealand, 1.3% in South Korea, and 1.1% in Japan, Australia, and Taiwan. But the covid-19 virus continues to extend its tentacles, and investor fear abruptly overtook hope in Europe where equity […] More
Stampede Out of Risky Assets
December 6, 2018
Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.9% overnight, and share prices are down even more sharply in the United States, Canada, U.K., Germany, France, Spain, China, Hong Kong. 10-year sovereign debt yields have climbed 14 and 10 basis points in Italy and Greece but fallen 8 bps in the U.K., 7 bps in the U.S., 5 bps in […] More
Dollar Down, Stocks Mostly Up Overseas
November 1, 2018
The dollar fell overnight on this first day of November by 1.5% against the kiwi, 1.3% relative to the Australian dollar, 1.0% vis-a-vis the peso and sterling, 0.7% versus the euro, 0.6% against the Swiss franc, and 0.4% relative to the loonie and yuan. The yen, in contrast, remains unchanged against the dollar. Share prices […] More
