· The dollar held near recent highs on Monday as uncertainty over the U.S.-China trade war encouraged investors to move into the safety of the greenback, while the New Zealand dollar slid to a 4-year low after business confidence tumbled.
Traders in Asia mostly shrugged off news that the Trump administration was considering de-listing Chinese companies from U.S. stock markets after the reports were hosed down by Treasury officials, but investor sentiment remained fragile.
The U.S. currency, measured against a basket of rival currencies, was little changed at 99.061 in early European trade, while against the euro it stood at $1.0945.
The dollar earlier this month hit a more than 2-year high of 99.37.
Euro zone inflation numbers for September were largely weaker than expected, but the euro was little moved.
The Japanese yen firmed 0.2% to 107.75 yen per dollar.
China’s offshore yuan held steady at 7.135 per dollar.
· Charles Evans, president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, told CNBC Monday that he was “open-minded” when asked about the right level for interest rates in the U.S.
“I’m definitely open minded about what the right level of the federal funds rate target is to have appropriate monetary policy,” he said.
“What we’ve done already might be sufficient, but I’m open minded to suggestions that we might need more, at the moment I’m going to be looking at the data,” he said, specifying inflation and labor market data as key metrics.
· The House of Representatives impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump over his request that a foreign power investigate a domestic political rival is set to intensify this week with testimony due from witnesses concerning allegations made by a whistleblower within the U.S. intelligence community.
· Congress is determined to get access to Donald Trump’s calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other world leaders, the U.S. House Intelligence Committee’s chairman said on Sunday, citing concerns that the Republican president may have jeopardized national security.
· Reuters is out with the latest comments from the Chinese Foreign Minister, as he says that China-US decoupling would harm both sides and cause instability in international markets.
· “For years, Silicon Valley looked down on China tech and believed it was only copying. But today, there is awareness that China is innovating and getting ahead in certain tech arenas,” says Rebecca Fannin, author of “Tech Titans of China.”
The world’s second-largest economy is already showing some good progress in its push on homegrown industries such as artificial intelligence and chips.
Experts suggest that the U.S. needs a national technology agenda and increased investment in research and development to retain its edge.
· Companies could flock to list in Hong Kong or Chinese domestic markets if the U.S. places restrictions on investments in China, according to analysts.
If that comes to pass, it could affect not just the Chinese, but also U.S. markets, said EY’s Ringo Choi, Asia Pacific IPO leader.
“It would ... hurt everyone,” he said. “But if they did do that, I think a lot of companies will come to Hong Kong, plus list in domestic markets like STAR board.” Choi was referring to China’s Nasdaq-style tech board that was launched in July — named the Science and Technology Innovation Board, or “STAR Market.”
· Japan’s industrial output shrank more than expected in August in the latest warning that the economy and its manufacturers are facing intensifying pressure from a bitter Sino-U.S. trade war.
Retail sales, however, expanded at a faster-than-expected pace, signalling strength in private spending ahead of October’s nationwide sales tax increase and Japan’s economy minister said the government was ready to support the economy if needed.
Industrial output fell 1.2% in August, government data showed, dropping at a faster pace than a median market forecast for a 0.5% decline and almost completely reversing July’s 1.3% increase.
· Oil prices slipped on Monday as China’s economic outlook remained weak even as manufacturing data improved as an ongoing trade war with the United States weighs on demand growth at the world’s largest crude importer.
Brent crude LCOc1 futures fell 20 cents to $61.71 a barrel by 0632 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 futures edged down 3 cents to $55.88 a barrel.
· Saudi Arabia’s crown prince warned in an interview broadcast on Sunday that oil prices could spike to “unimaginably high numbers” if the world does not come together to deter Iran, but said he would prefer a political solution to a military one.
“If the world does not take a strong and firm action to deter Iran, we will see further escalations that will threaten world interests,” the crown prince said. “Oil supplies will be disrupted and oil prices will jump to unimaginably high numbers that we haven’t seen in our lifetimes.”
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
Thai
Eng