· The euro climbed to the highest in nearly a week on Thursday as U.S. Treasury yields fell, pulling back from a two-year high, with the dollar weakening further late in the day on a report that President Donald Trump was leaning toward Jerome Powell as the next chair of the Federal Reserve.
Powell, a Federal Reserve governor, is favored by Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, a story from Politico said. He is considered less hawkish than other choices on Trump’s short list like former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh and economist John Taylor.
Powell would be expected to favor lower interest rates for the United States, reducing the value of the dollar to investors.
· President Donald Trump has concluded interviews with the five candidates he is considering to chair the Federal Reserve and could announce a decision as early as next week, a source familiar with the process said on Thursday.
· The euro EUR= rose to $1.1858, its highest since last Friday.
· In currencies, the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six currencies, was steady at 93.167 at 8:19 a.m. HK/SIN. The U.S. currency, meanwhile, edged up against the Japanese yen fetch 112.63.
· The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits dropped to its lowest level in more than 44-1/2 years last week, pointing to a rebound in job growth after a hurricane-related decline in employment in September.
The labor market outlook was also bolstered by another report on Thursday showing a measure of factory employment in the mid-Atlantic region racing to a record high in October. The signs of labor market strength could cement expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in December.
· Manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic heated up in October, the Philadelphia Fed said Thursday. Its gauge jumped 4.1 points to 27.9, the strongest reading since May.
· A senior White House aide said on Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump would demand steps toward repealing Obamacare in any healthcare legislation, comments that cast doubt on the prospects for a short-term bill to shore up insurance markets.
· North Korea has sent a letter to Australia’s parliament, warning it is a nuclear power and will not be cowed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to destroy it, according to a copy of the letter published in an Australian newspaper on Friday.
· Pyongyang's ongoing nuclear aggression may potentially result in South Korea and Japan hosting nuclear weapons on their own turf, a scenario that would have wide-ranging negative consequences, Singapore's leader has warned.
· "What's different this time is that North Korea has more nuclear weapons ... so the risks are higher," Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in an interview with CNBC on Thursday.
· China’s central bank chief on Thursday issued a stark warning about asset bubbles in the world’s second-largest economy, which looks set to clock its first acceleration in annual growth since 2010, driven by public spending and record bank lending.
· Japan's Abe Set for Landslide Election Win - Victory could pave the way for him to govern Japan until 2021. Polls show him close to maintaining two-thirds majority
· Oil prices fell more than 1 percent on Thursday, breaking four days of gains, pressured by larger-than-expected product inventories in the United States and profit-taking after a recent run-up in markets.
Brent crude LCOc1 settled down 92 cents, or 1.6 percent, at $57.23 a barrel. The global benchmark is still about30 percent above its mid-year levels.
U.S. light crude CLc1 settled down 75 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $51.29, but is still nearly 25 percent higher than June’s lows.
Reference: Reuters, Bloomberg, CNBC
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