Talking Points
- Asian markets put in a mixed session yet again
- Bitcoin got up through $10,000 and stayed there
- North Korea tested a ballistic weapon which could reportedly reach the US
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Asian stock markets were mixed once again Wednesday despite the reported launch of the most powerful ballistic weapon yet tested by North Korea.
Markets were apparently more focused on the US, where tax reform plans appear to be making progress through Congress, and on Federal Reserve Chair-nominee Jerome Powell whose testimony seemed to offer continuity. They certainly took in stride the sort of belligerence from Pyongyang which once had the power to send all regional indexes scrambling for cover. The Nikkei 225 rose 0.47%, with the ASX 200 up 0.4%. Chinese stocks were lowe, but not by very much and the Kospi hovered around its opening level.
Bitcoin rose above $10,000 for the first time, and looked comfortable there as the Asian session wound down.
The US Dollar was steady against the Japanese Yen while the New Zealand Dollar drifted lower after parliamentary testimony from acting central bank governor Grant Spencer. He stuck mainly to housing market comments, but certainly didn’t sound overtly hawkish in any way.
Crude oil prices slipped, reportedly on market doubts that production cuts will be extended, and on news of higher US supply. Gold prices edged up but there was no obvious sign of haven buying in the wake of North Korea’s test.
There’s plenty of life left in Wednesday’s market calendar. US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen will appear before a Joint Economic Committee of Congress, with the data slate crowded both before and after she speaks. From Europe will come German consumer price numbers and UK mortgage approval levels for October. From the other side of the Atlantic will come the first revision to US third-quarter Gross Domestic Product numbers while mortgage approval and personal spending snapshots are also due.
--- Written by David Cottle, DailyFX Research
Contact and follow David on Twitter: @DavidCottleFX
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