• The dollar edged down on Tuesday, stepping back from recent highs as market attention turns to who will be the next head of the U.S. central bank.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was down 0.2 percent at 93.741, moving away from 94.017, which had been its highest since Oct. 6.
The dollar inched 0.1 percent lower to 113.35 yen, pulling away from a three-month high of 114.10 yen hit in the wake of Sunday’s general election in Japan.
The euro added 0.1 percent to $1.1762, though its gains were seen capped ahead of the European Central Bank’s policy meeting on Thursday, where the authority is expected to signal it will take small steps away from its ultra-easy monetary policy.
• Traders are eagerly anticipating Thursday's meeting of the European Central Bank (ECB), with some contemplating whether President Mario Draghi's actions could radically reschedule when the central bank's first rate hike could come.
• The European Commission is not negotiating with London in a hostile way and assumes that the EU and Britain will reach a fair deal on Brexit, its president said on Tuesday.
“I would like to say that the Commission is not negotiating in a hostile mood. We want a deal. Those who don’t want a deal - the ‘no-dealers’ - they have no friends in the Commission. We want a fair deal,” Jean-Claude Juncker told the European Parliament.
• China’s economy will likely grow 6.8 percent in 2017, topping the state target and accelerating for the first time in seven years, a Reuters poll showed, as Beijing walks a tightrope by containing debt and property risks without stunting economic growth.
Still, growth in the world’s second-largest economy is projected to slow to 6.4 percent in 2018, the Reuters poll of more than 65 economists showed, as the property curbs and efforts to deal with debt risks are expected to gain more traction.
• China's finance minister said the country's 2017 fiscal deficit will be less than the budget deficit target of 3 percent of GDP due to stronger-than-expected economic growth, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on Monday, citing a statement to the newspaper.
The minister, Xiao Jie, reiterated that China's switch to a value-added tax (VAT) system and other cuts in company fees would reduce corporate costs by at least 1 trillion yuan ($150.90 billion) this year, the newspaper said.
• Southeast Asian demand for oil will keep growing until at least 2040 as emerging nations there rely on the fossil fuel to transport their rapidly growing populations, ship goods and make plastics, the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday.
Oil usage in the region will expand to around 6.6 million barrels per day by 2040 from 4.7 million bpd now, with the number of road vehicles increasing by two-thirds to around 62 million, the agency said in a report. It did not make any forecasts beyond 2040.
• Oil prices inched up on Tuesday, getting support from a decline in oil exports from OPEC’s second-biggest producer Iraq and a projected extended fall in U.S. commercial oil stocks.
London Brent crude for December delivery LCOc1 was up 5 cents at $57.42 a barrel by 0258 GMT after settling down 38 cents on Monday.
U.S. crude for December delivery CLc1 was up 5 cents at $51.95.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
Thai
Eng