Asian share markets continue their mixed start to the trading week as risk markets continue to wait the latest from the tanker attacks in the Gulf and the upcoming FOMC Meeting on Wednesday. The PBOC is basically holding steady with its firm hold on the Yuan while the RBA released its latest minutes which sent the Aussie dollar falling due to the much more dovish tone.
Chinese share markets slipped after recently rebounding, with the Shanghai Composite falling nearly 0.3% and remaining below the 2900 point barrier, while the Hang Seng Index bounced again, lifting nearly 0.7% higher to 27418 points. The daily chart is stabilising somewhat here but caution still reigns:
Japanese share markets were the wet bag for the party as Yen strengthened, with the Nikkei 225 snapping down 0.9% in a sharp selloff, closing at 20931 points. The USJDPY pair fell back down to the low 108s after again failing to get anywhere near the two week long resistance overhead nearer the 109 handle:
The ASX200 however made good on the RBA minutes by surging over half a percent, closing at 6567 points. The Australian dollar helped by falling below its previously daily low, hitting the 68.30 level in the wake of the dovish minutes. The daily chart spells the picture here – its all over for the Pacific Peso:
S&P and Eurostoxx futures are down slightly going into the European open with the four hourly chart of the S&P500 chart still unable to get above strong resistance at the psychologically important 2900 point level going into tomorrow nights FOMC meeting where everyone is hoping for more puts!
The economic calendar continues tonight with quite a few central bank speeches to watch out for, but also the very important German ZEW Survey and US housing starts.