Talking Points:
- Higher oil prices supported some indexes but weighed on others
- The session’s Asia data were scant, with Reserve Bank of Australia policy minutes adding little to market knowledge
- The US Dollar was lower, but not by much
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Asian markets were mixed again Tuesday with a bounce in oil prices supporting some bourses.
The Nikkei ended up 0.25%, with Australia’s ASX up by a similar amount. Chinese stocks had the worst of the session with both the Shanghai Composite and the Hang Seng down by 0.2%
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda crossed the newswires, but his words contained nothing he hadn’t said before. He evinced faith both in the BoJ’s ability to hit its inflation target and the amount of monetary ammunition remaining even after years of stimulus. He declined to be drawn on whether he will be seeking another term at the BoJ helm. His current stint will ends in April, 2018.
The Reserve Bank of Australia released the minutes of its May 2 monetary policy conclave. They emphasized watchfulness on the housing and labor markets but, again, had nothing new for investors.
The US Dollar slipped, but not by much with the Dollar index down by about 0.1 to 98.805. The greenback has been pressured by softer US data last week. Monday’s news from the New York Federal Reserve that its banking-activity barometer had fallen into negative territory for the first time since October. The Euro made a one-month high against the US Dollar with investors looking hopefully to Eurozone growth data later in the day.
Crude oil prices gained again, extending Monday’s run higher after a joint announcement by Saudi Arabia and Russia that they will push for an extension of supply cuts into March 2018. Both US crude and Brent added about 12 cents/barrel in the Asian session. Gold prices managed a fourth straight session of gains as the US Dollar eased and investors wondered about the likely magnitude of US interest rate rises ahead.
The rest of the global day offers a cross section of scheduled economic news. The latest UK consumer price index performance is coming, along with the ZEW sentiment survey out of Germany. Gross Domestic Product data from Italy and the Eurozone as a whole are also due. From the US will come industrial-production and housing-start numbers
--- Written by David Cottle, DailyFX Research
Contact and follow David on Twitter: @DavidCottleFX
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