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Weekly Market Commentary
US Markets closed softer on Friday after a week of record gains. Geo-Political events surrounding Iran and the US have settled, after the assassination of the Iranian General and the Iranian faux response. The Iranians launched a missile attack in response to the assassination, but was misdirected (whether accidental or deliberate), allowing the US to de-escalate tensions by imposing further economic tariffs, rather than a military tit-for-tat. This has resulted in markets concentrating on economic matters and US equities pushed into record territory once again.
The UK Parliament voted to Brexit on the 31st of January and now attention will turn to trade negotiations with the EU. The EUR traded 1.1120, while the GBP fell back to 1.3060, both impacted by a rising US Dollar. The loss of the UK to the EU has yet, to be seriously calculated, in either political or economic terms. The Dollar is supported by an interest rate premium and a strong domestic economy, so 2020 could be a year of gains for the reserve currency. Commodity currencies suffered accordingly, with the AUD retreating to 0.6900, while the NZD traded 0.6635.
The coming week will reveal an ocean of global economic data releases, headlined by US Retail Sales and Economic Sentiment reports, while Geo-Political events remain a threat to markets.US Markets closed softer on Friday after a week of record gains. Geo-Political events surrounding Iran and the US have settled, after the assassination of the Iranian General and the Iranian faux response. The Iranians launched a missile attack in response to the assassination, but was misdirected (whether accidental or deliberate), allowing the US to de-escalate tensions by imposing further economic tariffs, rather than a military tit-for-tat. This has resulted in markets concentrating on economic matters and US equities pushed into record territory once again.
The UK Parliament voted to Brexit on the 31st of January and now attention will turn to trade negotiations with the EU. The EUR traded 1.1120, while the GBP fell back to 1.3060, both impacted by a rising US Dollar. The loss of the UK to the EU has yet, to be seriously calculated, in either political or economic terms. The Dollar is supported by an interest rate premium and a strong domestic economy, so 2020 could be a year of gains for the reserve currency. Commodity currencies suffered accordingly, with the AUD retreating to 0.6900, while the NZD traded 0.6635.
The coming week will reveal an ocean of global economic data releases, headlined by US Retail Sales and Economic Sentiment reports, while Geo-Political events remain a threat to markets.
Weekly Market Calendar
13/1 UK Manufacturing/Industrial Production UK GDP, UK Trade
14/1 China Trade Exports/Imports, NZ Building Permits, US Budget, NZ Building Permits, Australia Consumer Confidence, Japan Trade Exports/Imports, Japan Balance of Payents, Japan Current Account, NFIB Small Business Optimism, US CPI
15/1 Kansas City Fen Manufacturing, NZ Food Pries, UK CPI, EU Industrial Production, EU Trade, US Weekly Mortgage Application, EU Trade, US Weekly Mortgage Applications, Empire State Manufacturing
16/1 Australia Consumer Confidence, Fed's Biege Book, NZ Credit Card Spending, German CPI, US Retail Sales, US Weekly Jobless Claims
17/1 NAHB House Market Index, NZ Manufacturing PMI, China GDP, China Industrial Production, China Retail Sales, EU Current Account, UK Retail Sales, EU CPI, US Building Permits, US Housing Starts, US Industrial/Manufacturing Production, University of Michigan Economic Sentiment