Everything but local stocks had very solid sessions across Asia today on the back of renewed optimism across Wall Street overnight as some softer PMI numbers helped lift risk sentiment around interest rate cuts. Healthy earnings from the tech sector are also helping with the foot off the USD as a result, giving the Australian dollar a lift to finally get back above the 65 cent level.
Oil prices are seeing some upside with Brent crude trying to push above the $88USD per barrel level while gold is still struggling to recover from its recent rough retracement, finishing just below the $2330USD per ounce level this afternoon:
Mainland and offshore Chinese share markets are heading somewhat in the same direciton with the Shanghai Composite up nearly 0.5% while the Hang Seng Index has soared over 2% higher to 17182 points, continuing its very strong start to the trading week. Japanese stock markets are doing even better with the Nikkei 225 up nearly 2.4% to 38419 points with the USDJPY pair again ready to breakout here as it bunches just below the 155 level:
Australian stocks were the odd ones out with a scratch session with the ASX200 finishing dead flat at 7683 points while the Australian dollar is jumping off the bottom of the pool, breaking through the 65 cent level late in afternoon trade to fill all of last week’s dour move lower:
S&P and Eurostoxx futures are up at least 0.5% this afternoon as we head into the London session with the S&P500 four hourly chart showing price action getting out its small correction, possibly finding a bottom here at the 5000 point zone:
The economic calendar includes the latest German IFO business survey, followed by US durable goods orders.