Asian stock markets are a bit more cautious today as traders get get for tonight’s FOMC meeting with only Aussie stocks taking a diver as the Australian dollar hovers at the 71 cent level as other undollars catch their breath. Bitcoin is still struggling to keep its head above water, currently at $48K, up slightly on the day but its gold that is concerning, taking another leg down after its selloff overnight, ready to fall to the previous lows at the $1760USD per ounce level:
Mainland Chinese shares are putting in another weak session with a small drop on the Shanghai Composite, down only 0.1% to 3656 points while the Hang Seng Index is putting in a scratch session to be at 23638 points. Japanese markets are actually a bit more bullish with the TOPIX up 0.5% while the Nikkei 225 is likely to close some 0.2% higher at 28459 points with the USDJPY pair moving slightly higher to the upper edge of its tight band of resistance and support, almost through short term resistance at 113.80 level:
Australian stocks stood out with falls across the board, with the ASX200 losing 0.7% to close at 7327 points as the 7400 point level turns into stiff resistance. The Australian dollar dropped below the 71 handle briefly but managed to get just back above that level this afternoon, with the upcoming FOMC meeting weighing on stronger USD expectations:
Eurostoxx futures and S&P futures are trying to bounceback going into the London open, with the S&P500 four hourly chart showing price wanting to get back above former ATR support at the 4650 point level but lacking in confidence as we head into what could be a very hawkish Fed meeting:
The economic calendar will focus squarely on the FOMC meeting tonight, but there’s other important releases like UK inflation and US retail sales.