· The dollar fell on Wednesday in a generally risk-averse market after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested a shutdown of the government was possible and threatened to terminate the North American Free Trade Agreement.
· Trump warned late on Tuesday he might end the NAFTA trade treaty with Mexico and Canada after three-way talks failed to bridge deep differences. He also said he may shut down the government if he does not get funding to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
The Congressional Budget Office said in June that Congress would need to raise the debt limit by early to mid-October to avoid a default.
- In late trading, the dollar fell 0.5 percent to 108.97 yen JPY=, as the dollar index slid 0.4 percent to 93.151 .DXY.
- The euro earlier was propped up by strong German and French PMI survey readings, although analysts warned the currency's gains could be short-lived due to concerns about heavy one-sided bets.
- The euro rose 0.5 percent to $1.1818 EUR=.
· New U.S. single-family home sales unexpectedly fell in July, dropping to their lowest in seven months amid a surge in prices, raising concerns of a slowdown in the housing market recovery.
Coming on the heels of data this month showing a tumble in home building and permits in July, the weak sales pace suggests that housing could remain a drag on economic growth in the third quarter.
The Commerce Department said on Wednesday new home sales declined 9.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 571,000 units last month, the lowest level since December 2016. The percentage drop was the largest since August 2016 and confounded economists' expectations for a 0.3 percent gain.
June's sales pace was revised up to 630,000 units from the previously reported 610,000 units. Home sales in May also were not as weak as previously reported, taking some of the sting from July's report.
· President Donald Trump's fellow Republicans rebuked him on Wednesday after his threat to shut down the U.S. government over funding for a border wall rattled markets and cast a shadow over congressional efforts to raise the country's debt ceiling and pass spending bills.
Congress will have about 12 working days when it returns on Sept. 5 from its summer break to approve spending measures to keep the government open, while also facing a looming deadline to raise the cap on the amount the government may borrow. Both are must-approve measures.
· Ryan suggested Congress would need to approve a short-term extension, or continuing resolution, of current funding levels so that the Senate could have more time to pass a full spending bill. That would push the budget battle to later in the year and could in turn delay attempts at tax reform, another signature Trump campaign issue.
· The Trump administration is considering additional sanctions against Venezuela's government, including a ban on trading the country's debt, a U.S. administration official with knowledge of discussions said on Wednesday.
· U.S. companies' borrowing to spend on capital investment rose 12.9 percent in July from a year earlier, the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) said.
Companies signed up for $7.9 billion in new loans, leases and lines of credit last month, up from $7.0 billion a year earlier. However, their borrowing fell 19.4 percent from June.
· Nearly half of businesses operating in Britain's food supply chain say European Union workers are thinking about leaving because of uncertainty around Brexit, an industry survey showed on Thursday.
While Britain's economy has slowed sharply this year, evidence that the Brexit vote made an impact on the labor market is less clear.
Still, official data last week showed the number of EU-born people working in Britain rose just 1.6 percent year-on-year in the second quarter, the weakest increase in seven years.
· Oil prices rose on Wednesday after U.S. crude inventories declined for the eighth straight week and as a storm approached the Gulf Coast with the potential to disrupt oil and refined products output.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 settled up 70 cents to $52.57 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 were trading at $48.41, up 58 cents.
Reference: Reuters
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