Market Brief, North America

The dollar is holding near five-week highs this morning as Federal Reserve rate cut hopes continue to fade and renewed political uncertainty roils the euro area. Equity futures are setting up for a more subdued open, Treasury yields are down on safe-haven flows, and commodity prices are broadly lower. Friday’s non-farm payrolls report forced traders to push the expected initiation of the Fed’s easing cycle further into the future. Job growth surged, with a 272,000-position gain topping market expectations, and wage growth accelerated, rising 0.4 percent month-over-month. Overnight index swaps are currently pricing in 36 basis points in easing by...

With the US economy showing more signs of exhaustion, traders are tiptoeing back into bets on policy easing from the Federal Reserve before year end. Treasury yields – which have provided the fuel for the dollar’s recent outperformance – are climbing off a two-day low, equity futures are advancing as odds on two rate cuts in 2024 creep higher, and the greenback itself is little changed. US job markets cooled further last month. According to yesterday’s Job Openings and Labour Turnover survey, the number of open roles in the US fell from a revised 8.355 million to 8.059 million in...