· US ADP Employment Change February Preview:
Employment remains at the center of the US economic recovery. The end of December and January lockdowns that crippled hiring are expected to liberate the labor market. The question is how soon?
The clients of Automatic Data Processing (ADP) the largest US private payroll company are forecast to add 177,000 workers in February, following a similar 174,000 increase in January.
Although it is historically uncommon for ADP to add more jobs in one month than NFP, that may become more frequent until the labor market revovery reaches the restaurant, travel and small business sectors.
· Dollar on defensive as risk sentiment recovers amid retreat in U.S. yields; Aussie gains
The safe-haven U.S. dollar remained broadly weaker on Wednesday as Treasury yields retreated further, restoring some calm to global markets and reigniting demand for riskier assets.
The lower U.S. bond yields also sapped some of the dollar’s allure among fellow low-yielding currencies, with the yen and Swiss franc bouncing off multi-month lows overnight.
Fiscal stimulus has fuelled market expectations for a rapid recovery, with President Joe Biden close to passing a $1.9 trillion spending package.
An index of the dollar against six of its major peers was little changed early in the Asian session Wednesday, after dropping back from a nearly one-month high overnight.
Meanwhile, European Central Bank board member Fabio Panetta said the bloc’s monetary authority should expand bond purchases or even increase the quota earmarked for them if needed to keep yields down. The euro was little changed at $1.20880 after rising more than 0.3% in the previous session, when it rebounded from an almost one-month low below $1.20.
The dollar added 0.2% to 106.875 yen, another safe-haven currency, consolidating after its retreat from the cusp of 107 overnight, a level unseen since August.
In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin consolidated around $49,000, following a sharp retreat after hitting a record high of $58,354.14 on Feb. 21.
· Analysis: Spike in bond yields dented some hedge fund February returns
· COVID-19 Vaccination
So far 108 countries have begun vaccinating people for the coronavirus and have administered at least 249,196,000 doses of the vaccine.
· EU targets vaccine production capacity of 2-3 billion doses/year by end-2021 paper
The European Union aims to increase the region’s COVID-19 vaccine production capacity to 2-3 billion doses per year by the end of 2021, Industry Commissioner Thierry Breton was quoted as saying on Wednesday.
· Tokyo area governors look to extend COVID-19 emergency by two weeks
Governors in the Tokyo area are considering asking Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to extend the COVID-19 state of emergency by about two weeks as the decline in new infections has slowed, sources with knowledge of the plan said Wednesday.
· South Korea probing two deaths after AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine: KDCA
South Korean authorities said on Wednesday they are investigating the deaths of two people after a media report said the pair - both with pre-existing conditions - died within days of receiving AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine.
A 63-year-old nursing home patient with cerebrovascular disease developed symptoms, including high fever, after being given the AstraZeneca vaccine, Yonhap news agency reported. The person was moved to a larger hospital on Tuesday, but died after showing symptoms of blood poisoning and pneumonia, Yonhap said.
Another person in their 50s with a cardiac disorder and diabetes died on Wednesday after suffering multiple heart attacks, having received the same vaccine a day earlier, the agency said.
An official with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) told Reuters it was investigating the cause of the deaths, but did not elaborate or confirm the details of Yonhap’s report.
· Australia armed forces called in to support COVID-19 immunization drive
Australia will seek the support of the defence forces in its COVID-19 immunisation drive, authorities said on Wednesday, as it looks to ramp up a vaccination rollout programme that is running behind schedule.
· Modi's ministers choose 'Made in India' vaccine over AstraZeneca
· Crisis-hit New York Governor Cuomo faces loss of pandemic emergency powers
· US GDP growth will likely miss a key forecast if the global economy falters, Dallas Fed says
· U.S. working with allies on COVID-19 vaccine strategy in Asia to counter China: FT
The United States is working with allies Japan, India and Australia on a plan to distribute COVID-19 vaccines in Asia to counter the influence of China, the Financial Times newspaper reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the talks.
· UK's Sunak to promise 'whatever it takes' in new COVID budget plan
Finance minister Rishi Sunak will promise on Wednesday to do “whatever it takes”, including a five-month extension of Britain’s huge jobs rescue plan, to steer the economy through what he hopes will be the final months of COVID restrictions.
· Australian economy storms ahead as COVID recovery turns 'V-shaped'
Australia’s economy expanded at a much faster-than-expected pace in the final quarter of last year and all signs are that 2021 has started on a firm footing too helped by massive monetary and fiscal stimulus.
· Dovish BOJ policymaker calls for new strategy to beat price stagnation
· Oil slips on concerns that OPEC+ may be set to pump up supply
Oil prices were down in early trade on Wednesday, extending several days of losses, amid uncertainty over how much supply producing countries will push to restore to the market at a meeting this week while the coronavirus pandemic persists.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 18 cents, or 0.3%, to $59.57 a barrel by 0122 GMT, down 6% since Feb. 25, when they hit their highest close since May 2019.
Brent crude futures dipped 7 cents, or 0.1%, to $62.63 a barrel, down 7% from a 13-month high hit last week.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies, together called OPEC+, are set to meet on Thursday, at a time when they are generally positive on the oil market outlook compared with a year ago when they slashed supply to boost prices.
· OPEC oil has advantage over U.S. shale during pandemic recovery
The once-brash U.S. shale industry, which spent profusely in recent years to grab market share, is now focused on preserving cash, putting it at a disadvantage to low-cost OPEC producers as the global economy begins to gear up again.
Prior to the pandemic-induced downturn, OPEC countries led by Saudi Arabia restrained their production, eager to bolster prices to fund national budgets dependent on oil revenue. Shale drillers took advantage, boosting U.S. output to a record 13 million barrels a day.
But attendees of the year’s top energy conference made clear that even with a buoyant, $60-per-barrel oil price, shale will not come roaring back from the Covid-19 pandemic as it did from the 2016 downturn.
· Venezuela to weigh oil law reform to allow 'new models,' Maduro says
Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday that the National Assembly would consider reforms to oil legislation that he said would allow for “new business models” in the crisis-stricken South American country’s crucial oil industry.
· Myanmar police fire to break up protests as ASEAN diplomatic effort stalls
Myanmar security forces opened fire in several places on Wednesday to break up anti-junta protests and several people were hurt, media reported, a day after a regional diplomatic push to end the month-long crisis made little headway.
· Two demonstrators killed in Myanmar's second biggest city: witness, media reports
· Myanmar U.N. envoy, junta make rival claims to U.N. representation
· IS claims responsibility for attack on media workers in eastern Afghanistan: SITE intelligence group
Reference: CNBC, Reuters
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