Australian Shares

Via Saxo: Summary: Equities continue to rally although the first week of December has been more choppy due to mixed trade headlines from the US and China.

By Chris Becker  A mixed night on risk markets with the positive sentiment fading goign into the weekend, as no news on a US/China trade deal is construed as bad news.

Stocks are advancing across Asia in the wake of optimism that a trade deal between US and China can be struck before the December 15 tariffs kick in, with the ASX up over 1% while the USD treads water against most of the majors.

By Chris Becker  A big reversal in sentiment overnight as stock markets reacted positively to the speculation that the December 15 US/China tariffs may be avoided with a secure trade deal.

Another rough day here on Asian stock markets with some fluctuation in USD weakness as the upcoming December 15 China tariffs are seeming to firm.

Not much fun for Aussie assets today.

By Chris Becker  Again, markets are in the thrall of a US President’s comments, with Trump threatening tariffs against France – while in France and celebrating 70 years of the NATO Alliance – and conceding that the US/China trade deal may not go through until the election.

A mixed day across Asian stock markets with the slump on Wall Street overnight reflected across most bourses except Chinese, which bucked the trend.

By Chris Becker  Last night saw a big risk inversion on trade concerns as the Twit in Chief rolled out new steel tariffs and blamed the Fed and high USD, just as the latest ISM Manufacturing print came in with a surprise fall and contraction, particularly in employment.

Asian stock markets have started the week on a strong note despite the slump on Wall Street on Friday night, namely because of the weaker Yen sending Japanese stocks higher and a firm Chinese PMI print.

By Chris Becker  Friday night saw the return of US traders to their desks and waited for any news about the ongoing US/China trade negotiations, with a mild risk-off session the result.

Asian stock markets have gone into risk off mode going into the weekend, despite the Black Friday retail orgy but mainly due to lack of direction from closed a Wall Street.

By Chris Becker  US markets were closed for thanksgiving overnight, leaving other risk markets to their own devices as the Chinese reaction to continued pressure on their oppression in Hong Kong made a small impression.

Readers will know that we are not a believer in the global recovery narrative driving the great stock blowoff.

Asian stock markets are quite mixed across the region with local shares buoyed by Westpac’s call for two more rate cuts by the beleagured RBA, which sent the Aussie dollar down, while Chinese stocks continued their pullback as the Yuan fix hovered around the 7 handle.

By Chris Becker  Overnight risk markets took a step back as the USD cooled on its strengthening trend against the major undollar assets, with gold moving higher alongside Euro and Yen.

A solid session for most Asian stock markets although this hasn’t translated into a full risk on response from S&P and Eurostoxx futures as currencies were unable to move in their risk proxy directions as usual, Yen in particular.

Hope at Bloomie: Asian stocks gained Tuesday amid optimism over U.S.-China trade talks and a fresh wave of merger and acquisition activity.

By Chris Becker  A big surge on overnight markets with US stocks making new record highs in the wake of fresh optimism surrounding the US/China trade deal and the run up to the Black Friday retail orgy.

Weekend news of a possible resolution or movement of some kind in the US/China trade talks although the IMF is right to say this might be just domestic politics posturing as one country tries to stabilise internal struggle while the other tries to kick out a corrupt autocrat.

Via Epoch Times: Elements of the immediate and long-term aftermath of a Hong Kong massacre may include the following catastrophic results for the CCP: The destruction of Hong Kong’s reputation as a safe and free haven for business.

By Chris Becker  US all the way on Friday night with Treasuries, the USD Index and Wall Street all advancing in tandem on the back of (spurious) claims by Trump that the US/China trade talks are advancing well – even though he later contradicted that in a Fox news rant.

Another generally mixed day in Asian risk taking given the poor performance on Wall Street overnight as the stronger USD weighs on markets.