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Markets Update: Updates on China's real estate index. Australian dollar surges following jobs data release. Upcoming news on TSMC's results and ECB decision.
Global Markets Roundup: 18 October 2024
FESX1! | Z1! | NI225 | NQ1! | ES1! | EURUSD | USDJPY | DXY | GOLD | CL1! | ZC1! | ZS1! HG1!
Asian stocks traded cautiously on Friday following mixed signals about the health of China's economy, while Japanese markets were lifted by a weaker yen. The dollar remained near an 11-week high against major currencies on Friday, as strong U.S. economic data suggested a more gradual approach to Federal Reserve policy easing. Market speculation about a potential election win for Donald Trump, whose policies are viewed as inflationary, also supported the U.S. currency and drove gold prices to a new record high. Mainland Chinese blue chips fell by 0.25%, with property shares dragging down the market due to reports of declining new home prices. Separate data revealed that China's economy grew by 0.9% in the third quarter, slightly below the anticipated 1.0% increase, with the previous quarter's growth being revised downwards to 0.5%.
Last month, Beijing announced its largest stimulus package since the start of the pandemic. However, investors have expressed frustration due to the lack of detailed information provided by Chinese authorities in subsequent briefings. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong experienced a 0.42% increase, primarily led by gains in technology stocks following strong earnings reports from Taiwanese chipmaker TSMC and Nvidia supplier. The TWSE:TAIEX index in Taiwan rose by 2.57%. Conversely, Australia's XJO index declined by 0.82%, while South Korea's KOSPI index dropped by 0.38%. Japan's Nikkei index, NI225, recorded a 0.37% uptick.
In the foreign exchange markets, the DXY dollar index, which compares the currency against six counterparts such as the euro and yen, slightly decreased to 103.73, following a rise to 103.87 on Thursday, marking its first increase since Aug. 2. The EURUSD climbed to $1.0834 after falling to $1.0811 in the previous session, reaching its lowest point since Aug. 2. The USDJPY dropped by 0.12% to 150.04 yen after surging to 150.32 yen overnight, breaking through the significant 150 level for the first time since Aug. 1. EURUSD | USDJPY | AUDUSD | DXY | NZDUSD
In commodities, Gold reached a new all-time high of $2,707.90. On Friday, crude oil futures slightly increased, benefiting from an unexpected decline in U.S. oil stocks and ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Brent crude futures BRN1! climbed by 0.31% to $74.68 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CL1! rose by 0.38% to $70.94 per barrel. In soft commodities, March London cocoa C2! settled up 34 pounds, or 0.7%, to 5,220 pounds per metric ton. December New York cocoa CC1! was little changed at $7,771 a ton. December arabica coffee KC1! settled down 2.85 cents, or 1.1%, at $2.5515 per lb. November robusta coffee RC1! fell 3.6% to $4,685 a ton, having hit a one-month low of $4,657. March raw sugar SB1! settled up 0.16 cents, or 0.7%, at 22.16 cents per lb, having closed down 3.6% on Wednesday. December white sugar SF1! rose 0.4% to $565.70 a ton, having closed down 2.4% on Wednesday. Chicago wheat prices increased on Friday due to dry conditions in major exporting countries and concerns over Russia's shipments. The main wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade, ZW1, rose by 0.5% to $5.92-1/4 per bushel, while CBOT soybeans, ZS1, increased by 0.1% to $9.89-3/4 per bushel, and corn, ZC1, climbed by 0.1% to $4.07 per bushel. Despite these daily fluctuations, wheat prices were down by 1.6% for the week, with soybeans down by 1.5% and corn down by 2.2% compared to last Friday's closing prices. BRN1! | CL1! | GOLD | HG1! | KC1! | RC1! | CC1!
Looking forward refer to the economic calendar below to see the upcoming events scheduled for today and the rest of the week.
General news - Information source from multiple newswires.
The article and the data is for general information use only, not advice!
The Trade Academy Team