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Products slip, stocks consistent ahead of Fed, BOJ rate choices

Oil rates hit sevenweek lows on Tuesday as a softening demand outlook weighed on products, while bond, currency and stock markets traded cautiously ahead of central bank conferences in the U.S. and Japan and a slew of significant business earnings reports.

Brent crude futures touched $79.36 as traders focused on worries over Chinese need rather than tensions in the Middle East or Venezuela, and turned sellers.

Copper and iron ore rates fell, and zinc and aluminium slipped to multi-month lows, while there was little by way of assistance from China's Politburo, which at its July meeting announced no new in-depth efforts to improve the economy.

The S&P 500 has actually steadied after a two-week decline and futures were flat late in the Asia session.

European futures edged 0.1% higher, with moves kept small by the two-day policy meetings in Washington and Tokyo that tower above markets and conclude on Wednesday.

Japan's Nikkei, which dropped nearly 6% last week, was 0.1% lower in afternoon trade. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.4%.

A couple of individual stock relocations were distinctive, with a. discounted block-sale dragging iron ore miner Fortescue. down more than 9% in Australia. Shares of Standard Chartered. rose 5% in Hong Kong after the lender lifted its. revenues outlook and revealed a $1.5 billion share buyback. strategy.

All eyes were on rate of interest. Japanese federal government bond. yields edged lower with the 10-year JGB yield. down 2.5 basis points at 1%. Ten-year U.S. Treasury yields. were steady at 4.186%.

The term 'calm before the storm' has been heard across the. floors, said Chris Weston, head of research study at Pepperstone in. Melbourne. This is a day for position management and to review. broad direct exposures.

Markets are pricing practically no opportunity of a U.S. rate cut this. week, however have totally priced a 25-basis-point decrease in the. Fed Funds rate for September and so anticipate policymakers to sound. dovish.

In Japan, a broader variety of result is on the table, with. markets pricing an almost 60% possibility of a 10-basis-point rate. hike and anticipating to hear about how the Bank of Japan prepares to. edge its escape of a huge bond-buying programme.

The dollar and yen drifted, however kept in fairly compact. ranges after recent breakout relocations.

The euro bought $1.0821 and mild pressure. stayed on the Australia dollar, which has been. dragged lower by falling commodity costs. The Aussie, which. bought almost $0.68 less than three weeks earlier, traded at. $ 0.6557.

The yen, which has actually rebounded dramatically from a. 38-year low of 161.96 per dollar struck early in July, hovered at. 154.67 per dollar.

We are at a fascinating intersection for yen here, said. Nathan Swami, head of currency trading at Citi in Singapore,. with this week's central bank meetings possibly sketching a. shift in the rates outlook and the yen's trajectory.

It is prematurely to tell if the elements driving yen weak point. have actually changed permanently. In the meantime, this seems more like a. short-term correction to the USD/JPY higher pattern, but we feel. there is disadvantage danger that requires to be priced into a trade.

Later in the day, Microsoft and chipmaker AMD. will report revenues after the bell in New york city, while. initial CPI data is due in Germany and Spain.

Australian inflation data will likewise be released on Wednesday. and the Bank of England is priced for an approximately even opportunity of a. rate cut at its policy meeting on Thursday.

(source: Reuters)