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☆ Asia shares pick up after Fed rate comments; oil dips
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Kane Wu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

U.S. stocks ended higher on Monday, with energy shares rising along with oil prices. The S&P 500 energy index (.SPNY) ended up 3.5%. Oil prices eased after climbing more than 4% on Monday. "The unrest and volatility in the near-term suggest that upside risks to oil prices will persist," said OCBC economists in a note. This will lead to some volatility in oil prices during intense periods of conflict but should see prices normalize, following the knee-jerk reaction."

Persons: Androniki, Kerry Craig, Australia's, Brent, Kane Wu, Stella Qiu, Edmund Klamanhn, Kim Coghill Organizations: Nikkei, REUTERS, dovish, Top Fed, Hamas, Asset Management, Garden Holdings, HK, National Bank of Australia, U.S, West Texas, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, HONG KONG, East, Europe, U.S, Asia Pacific, China, Israel, Palestinian, Gaza, Hong Kong, Sydney

☆ Asia shares rise after Fed comments, markets' eyes on Middle East
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Kane Wu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MSCI's gauge of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was up 1.2% at 0135 GMT. Japan's benchmark Nikkei average (.N225) rose 2.4% while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 (.AXJO) rose for a fourth straight session to gain 1.2%. Top Fed officials indicated on Monday that rising Treasury yields could steer the Fed from further rate increases, helping to spur a rise in bond prices after those markets had been closed the previous day in the U.S. and Tokyo. The markets' initial reaction to the major geopolitical developments in the Middle East was a bout of risk aversion, analysts from National Bank of Australia said in a note. Ten-year Treasury yields , which have been surging, fell more than 13 basis points to 4.6% at the open in Tokyo as bond prices rallied after Monday's holiday.

Persons: Androniki, Australia's, Kerry Craig, Brent, Kane Wu, Stella Qiu, Edmund Klamanhn Organizations: Nikkei, REUTERS, dovish, Top Fed, Tokyo ., Hamas, Asset Management, Garden Holdings, HK, National Bank of Australia, U.S, West Texas, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, HONG KONG, Asia Pacific, U.S, Israel, Palestinian, Gaza, Hong Kong, Sydney

☆ Dollar firm as markets eye China data
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The dollar was on the front foot in Asia on Friday, retaining overnight gains against peers after strong U.S. economic data and an ECB rate hike, with traders' attention warily turning to a data deluge from China. U.S. retail sales received a boost from higher gasoline prices, increasing 0.6% in August versus an estimated 0.2% rise, while market participants reacted to the European Central Bank's 25-basis point hike. "The data today will be super important," said Rodrigo Catril, senior FX strategist at the National Bank of Australia. The offshore yuan inched further down against the dollar to 7.2918 ahead of the data. "In that sense it means that any disappointment coming out of the data today, we'll likely see the CNY under pressure," with risks to the Aussie and the Kiwi as well, he said.

Persons: Rodrigo Catril, we'll Organizations: Central, U.S, Mizuho Bank, National Bank of Australia, People's Bank of China's, Kiwi Locations: Asia, China . U.S, Thursday's, China

☆ Dollar holds steady, yuan rises on better-than-expected China data
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Brigid Riley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The U.S. dollar index last stood somewhat lower at 105.32, but still near Thursday's six-month peak of 105.43. The yuan and Australian and New Zealand dollars received a boost after a batch of economic data from China in the Asian morning came in better-than-expected for some key indicators, providing a rare lift in sentiment. The offshore yuan inched up against the dollar to 7.2918 following the release. The Australian dollar , a proxy for China growth, rose nearly 0.3% to $0.6443, while the New Zealand dollar was up 0.2% at $0.5912. The yen stuck near 147.41 per dollar in the Asian morning.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Rodrigo Catril, Sterling, Simon Harvey, Brigid Riley, Indradip Ghosh, Lincoln, Navaratnam Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Central, U.S, greenback, New Zealand, People's Bank of China's, National Bank of Australia, Australian, Mizuho Bank, Thomson Locations: Asia, China, Thursday's, Europe

Separately, Shell has suspended loadings of Nigeria's Forcados crude oil due to a potential leak at a terminal. Protests in Libya alone could take away more than 250,000 barrels of oil per day from the market, ANZ Research said. Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world's biggest oil exporters, agreed this month to deepen oil cuts in place since November last year, providing further support to crude prices. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) on Thursday upgraded its oil demand forecast for 2023, adding it expected demand to grow 2.2% in 2024. U.S. consumer prices rose modestly in June at the smallest annual increase rate in more than two years as inflation continued to subside.

Persons: Edward Moya, Katya Golubkova, Jamie Freed, Muralikumar Organizations: Shell, Brent, . West Texas, ANZ Research, OANDA, of, Petroleum, National Bank of Australia, U.S ., U.S . Federal, Thomson Locations: Libya, Nigeria, SINGAPORE, Saudi Arabia, Russia, TOKYO

☆ Australia employment unexpectedly drops, reinforcing rate pause bets
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SYDNEY, May 18 (Reuters) - Australia employment unexpectedly dipped in April after two months of outsized gains, and the jobless rate also ticked up in a sign the red-hot labour market might be cooling, bolstering the case for a pause in interest rate hikes next month. The jobless rate ticked up to a three-month high of 3.7% from a near 50-year low of 3.5%, when analysts had expected no change. Markets reinforced bets of a rate pause next month but were pricing in some risk of a move in August or September. "We expect to see a gradual softening in labour market conditions over 2023 as the impact of interest rate increases to date start to bite," said Sean Langcake, head of macroeconomic forecasting for Oxford Economics Australia. "NAB's view is that there will likely be at least one further rate increase, but we remain close to the peak of this interest rate cycle."

☆ Oil prices rose as much as 2% on hopes of China's reopening and as OPEC+ maintains output cut targets
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A pump jack on an oil field owned by Bashneft company near the village of Nikolo-Berezovka, northwest from Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia, in 2015. The Group of Seven's price cap of $60 for Russian seaborne oil and a ban on Russian crude kicked in on Monday. Oil prices climbed as much as 2% on Monday after China signaled a broader relaxation of Covid curbs, OPEC+ announced its decision not to change oil production targets, and a price cap on Russian oil took effect. The Group of Seven's price cap of $60 for Russian seaborne oil and a ban on Russian crude kicked in on Monday. The Kremlin had previously threatened that it will not supply oil to countries setting and endorsing the price cap.

☆ Dollar holds firm, yen hovers around 32-year low
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Japanese yen and U.S. dollar banknotes are arranged for a photograph in Tokyo, Japan. The dollar index was little changed after falling 0.5% in the previous session as investors digested data that showed U.S. consumer prices increased more than expected in September. "I doubt the weaker dollar will sustain … the dollar is the safe-haven currency currently," Kong said. The dollar was trading at 147.43 to the yen , not far off from the 32-year peak of 147.665 it hit in the previous session. The Australian dollar was up 0.22% versus the greenback at $0.631, coming off two and half year low it touched in the previous session.

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