Market Watch APAC – 13th March 2024
The US CPI release came in slightly higher than expected, though not as much as had been feared by markets. Consumer Inflation came in at 0.4% for February, amid higher costs for gasoline and shelter. In the twelve months to February the CPI increased by 3.2% just above expectations of 3.1%. US Treasuries advanced following the release as investors factor in a higher for longer stance on interest rates by the Fed. The US-dollar has advanced against the Euro, Yen, CAD and the antipodeans as a result, but still hugging recent range levels. The Aussie reaction to the data release was immediately lower however, it has recovered back over 0.66-cents into the close and holds familiar ranges. With no significant local economic data due for Australia today, traders will monitor the USDCNH moves and the US Retail Sales tomorrow for any immediate direction. From a technical perspective , support for AUDUSD remains at 0.6545/55, should we see further pullback and gains will be met with supply at the 0.6665/70 zone initially and 0.6700/10 behind offering further resistance.
Wall Street stocks rallied, as investor expectations remained on track for the US Fed to embark on rate cuts in the coming months. The DJI was up +0.6%, S&P500 pushed higher +1.1% setting a new high and the Nasdaq rose +1.5%. Australian shares are expected to open firmer today, tracking global stocks following the release of the US CPI , though commodity sector shares could weigh on the index.
Gold prices dropped over 1% after the US inflation data dimmed this market’s expectations that the US Fed will hasten its interest rate expectations any time too soon.
Copper prices traded flat for the day as markets digest the US inflation data. Dalian Iron ore prices lower once again, as weak production sentiment hampers raw material demand in leading consumer China.
Brent Crude prices settled lower for the day as markets assessed the latest US inflation data and a higher than expected forecast for US crude production.
| AUDUSD
Open today 0.6606 Yesterday’s Range 0.6584 / 0.6639 |
NZDUSD
Open today 0.6151 Yesterday’s Range 0.6137 / 0.6184 |
AUDNZD
Yesterday’s Range 1.0707 / 1.0746 |
| AUDEUR
Yesterday’s Range 0.6029 / 0.6067 |
AUDCNH
Yesterday’s Range 4.7276 / 4.7635 |
AUDGBP
Yesterday’s Range 0.5156 / 0.5185 |
We hope you have found our expertly curated MarketWatch analysis useful in navigating the ever-changing FX landscape. To enhance our services and make sure you receive the most relevant and timely insights we have recently made some exciting updates to our newsletter.
To continue receiving our curated MarketWatch insights, we kindly request you resubscribe to our mailing list here: https://bit.ly/46YKOdo
