• Consolidation. Quiet end to last week. US S&P500 hit another record. Bond yields ticked up while the USD remained range bound.• China stimulus. More positive rhetoric but no specifics about the next wave of fiscal stimulus. But this looks to be a matter of when, not if.• Event radar. Locally, jobs figures are due (Thurs). Offshore, ECB meets, while US retail sales, NZ CPI, UK CPI, & China...

The dollar is recovering, ten-year Treasury yields are pushing higher, and risk sentiment is worsening as traders further downgrade odds on rate cuts from the Federal Reserve, forcing investors to brace for a modest tightening in financial conditions. The Canadian dollar is surging on an unexpectedly-strong jobs report, which is also lowering expectations for an accelerated pace of monetary easing...

• Partial reversal. US equities consolidated, bond yields eased, & base metal prices rose. After a negative run AUD & NZD a bit firmer.• US inflation. Headline & core CPI a touch higher than predicted. Key underlying trends still point to a series of US Fed rate cuts over the next year.• Event radar. China holds a fiscal policy briefing tomorrow. US PPI tonight. Next week AU jobs, US retail...

Consumer price growth accelerated in the United States last month, reducing the Federal Reserve’s scope for manoeuvre as it eases policy settings, and further depressing odds on a second outsized rate cut at next month’s decision. According to data published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics this morning, the core consumer price index – with highly-volatile food and energy prices excluded –...

Currency markets are losing momentum as investors brace for this morning’s September consumer price index numbers out of the United States. The dollar is holding steady after racking up an eight-day winning streak, and most of its rivals remain stuck within well-contained trading ranges as questions around the Federal Reserve’s easing trajectory continue to dominate price action. With the European...

• Mixed fortunes. Equities in China tumbled, while the US S&P500 hit a record. US bond yields rose, supporting the USD. AUD lost ground.• RBNZ cuts. RBNZ slashed rates by 50bps. The harsher NZ economic climate points to more cuts. Diverging trends point to a higher AUD/NZD.• US CPI. US inflation in focus. Headline CPI projected to slow, while core CPI forecast to hold steady. US yields & USD...

The dollar is heading toward an eighth day of gains as fixed-income traders pull back on monetary easing expectations and brace for hawkish undercurrents in this afternoon’s Federal Reserve meeting minutes. Ten-year Treasury yields are holding above the 4-percent threshold, North American equity futures are softening on the prospect of renewed antitrust action against Google’s parent company, and most...

The RBNZ has followed through and crystalized the built-up market expectations by delivering a 50bp interest rate cut at today’s monetary policy review. The move, the second interest rate reduction this cycle, lowers the RBNZ’s Official Cash Rate from 5.25% to 4.75%. The OCR had reached a peak of 5.5% during the RBNZ hiking phase which had put policy settings well into ‘restrictive’ territory. The...

The dollar is consolidating near a seven-week high against its major counterparts as yield differentials normalise and safe-haven demand fades. Treasury yields are moving in opposing directions across the curve, with the two-year slipping lower even as the ten-year inches higher, and North American equity futures are positioned for a modest recovery at the open. Currency markets are seeing mixed price...

• Stronger USD. A positive US jobs report has seen US rate expectations reprice higher, supporting the USD. AUD has fallen to mid-September levels.• China reopening. Financial markets in mainland China reopen today after a holiday. This will be in focus, as will a briefing by its economic planners.• Local events. Consumer confidence, business conditions, RBA meeting minutes, & speech by RBA Dep....