· Dollar firms, yen up as tech selloff hits forex
The dollar found support on Wednesday as a stock market slide spooked investors into selling riskier currencies, while worries about Brexit pushed the pound down to a new six-week low.
The moves have made for a nearly 2% bounce in the greenback, against a basket of currencies, from the more than two-year lows it touched earlier in the month. The safe-haven yen also climbed to a one-week high of 105.83 per dollar.
The risk-sensitive Antipodean currencies crept from two-week lows with the futures trade, to leave the Aussie ahead 0.2% at $0.7226 and the kiwi steady at $0.6621.
Sterling was unable to shake pressure as fears grow that Britain is preparing to undercut its Brexit divorce treaty. It dipped 0.2% to $1.2950, its lowest since the end of July.
The pound also languished at a six-week low of 90.57 pence against the euro and 137.04 yen.
The euro last traded at $1.1772.
In emerging Asia the Indonesian rupiah was kept under pressure by concerns about the independence of the central bank after parliament started reviewing proposals for a Monetary Council that would allow ministers a vote at policy meetings.
Bank Indonesia said it intervened in the spot market to smooth volatility, but the rupiah still dropped 0.6%.
· AstraZeneca puts leading COVID-19 vaccine trial on hold over safety concern
AstraZeneca Plc on Tuesday said it has paused global trials, including large late-stage trials, of its experimental coronavirus vaccine because of an unexplained illness in a study participant.
The vaccine, developed with the University of Oxford, has been widely seen as one of the leading global candidates against the coronavirus, and the suspension of the trial dims prospects for a potential year-end rollout its lead developer had signaled earlier.
AstraZeneca said it voluntarily paused trials to allow review of safety data by an independent committee and was working to expedite the review of the single event to minimize any potential impact on the trial timeline.
· Trump will announce reduction in U.S. troops in Iraq on Wednesday
President Donald Trump will announce a further drawdown of U.S. troops from Iraq on Wednesday, a senior administration official told reporters on Tuesday.
That announcement will be followed by another one in the coming days on a further reduction in U.S. forces in Afghanistan, the official said.
· The U.S. and Taiwan are drawing closer, irritating China
Taiwan has been building closer relationships with the U.S. recently, raising the ire of China.
The development comes as Taipei distances itself from China ahead of the U.S. presidential election and as China steps up military activity around the island.
· China factory prices fall more slowly in August with recovery on track
China’s factory gate prices fell for the seventh straight month in August but at the slowest annual pace since March, suggesting the industries of the world’s No. 2 economy continued to recover from the sharp coronavirus-induced downturn.
The producer price index (PPI) eased 2.0% from a year earlier in August, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Wednesday. That was in line with expectations in a Reuters poll, but the decline was more modest than the 2.4% fall in July.
The consumer price index meanwhile rose 2.4% last month from a year earlier, as expected, slower than a 2.7% annual increase in July.
· Japan's Suga in pole position for PM as debate kicks off
Yoshihide Suga is on course for a landslide victory in the race to become Japan’s next prime minister, an Asahi newspaper tally showed, as debate kicks off later Wednesday among the three candidates vying to succeed long-time leader Shinzo Abe.
Suga, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, has support to become party leader from 308 - almost 80% - of ruling Liberal Democratic Party members with seats in parliament, the Asahi said.
· Japan's Suga says strong economy necessary to pursue fiscal reform
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, a frontrunner to become next prime minister, said on Wednesday that strong economic growth is necessary to pursue fiscal reform.
“Reviving Japan’s economy is our priority ... A strong economy is necessary for social welfare, national security and fiscal reform,” Suga told a debate hosted by the ruling party.
Suga also said he would continue to focus on revitalising regional economies, which he described as among key pillars of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “Abenomics” stimulus policies.
· Oil extends decline as demand worries mount
Oil futures fell again on Wednesday after a sharp slide in the previous session, as a rebound in COVID-19 cases in some countries undermined hopes for a steady recovery in global demand.
Brent crude LCOc1 was down 19 cents, or 0.5%, at $39.59 a barrel by 0656 GMT after dropping more than 5% on Tuesday to fall below $40 a barrel for the first time since June.
U.S. crude CLc1 was down 24 cents, or 0.7%, at $36.52 a barrel, having fallen nearly 8% in the previous session.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters
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