Asian stock markets were dominated by the waiting and watching at what the BOJ would do at today’s interest rate meeting, expecting a surprise change but getting nothing which meant Japanese stocks soared on relief while others barely moved. Currency markets likewise had isolatd movements as Yen sold off sharply against USD while the rest of the majors basically tread water with the Australian dollar still below the 70 cent level. Meanwhile oil prices are edging slightly higher with Brent crude just below the $87USD per barrel level while gold is accelerating its recent retracement, now falling below the $1900USD per ounce level achieved last week, to pull back to a more sustainable trendline:
Mainland Chinese share markets are lifted just a fraction with the Shanghai Composite closing 0.2% higher to remain above the 3200 point level, finishing at 3228 points while the Hang Seng Index is up a fraction, just 0.2% to close at 21616 points. Japanese stock markets have soared higher on relief from no change in the BOJ position with the Nikkei 225 closing 2.5% higher at 26796 points with the USDJPY pair also lifting off the floor to be well above the 130 handle and reversing last week’s decline as we head into the London open:
Australian stocks again suffered a scratch session with almost no change as the ASX200 finished up a handful of points to 7393 points. The Australian dollar lifted a little higher in afternoon trade, but this is pretty muted in comparison, remaining just below the 70 cent level after getting overextended late last week:
Eurostoxx and US futures are drifting sideways with the S&P500 four hourly chart showing price action holding just above the 4000 point level but coming up against the uptrend line as short term momentum retraces from its formerly overbought area, signalling weakness ahead:
The economic calendar includes UK and Euro wide core inflation prints, then US retail sales and PPI inflation.