Markets:S&P 500 down 0.6%WTI crude down 54-cents to $70.57US 10-year yields up 3.2 bps to 3.54%Gold down $30 to $1990USD leads, AUD lagsThe theme
Markets:
- S&P 500 down 0.6%
- WTI crude down 54-cents to $70.57
- US 10-year yields up 3.2 bps to 3.54%
- Gold down $30 to $1990
- USD leads, AUD lags
The theme of the day was US dollar strength and it had the backing of a series of strong US economic data points, headlined by the US retail control group up 0.7% compared to +0.3% expected. The headline was soft but the dollar saw beyond that and was further lifted by industrial production and the NAHB data.
USD/JPY held a solid bid in a rally to 136.65 from 135.75 before a late slip back to 136.35 on soft equities.
The euro and pound also slid on the day with sterling also pressured by a softer jobs report.
The commodity currencies all ended up lower but the Canadian dollar outperformed on a hot CPI report driven by rising gasoline prices. That has been reversed in May (so far) so the initial drop in USD/CAD to 1.3405 entirely reversed with the help of a dip in oil and equities. Last at 1.3478, up a dozen pips on the day.
AUD fell in Asia on soft Chinese data but bounced early in New York on a decent risk mood but as that turned and the dollar climbed, AUD/USD fell to a late session low at 0.6655.
Fed talk and debt ceiling talk was more of the same but the volume of it was high and it’s not going away any time soon.
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