EQUITIES
Asian shares lagging, with South Korean stocks led losses. The Kosdaq Composite Index plunged -2.94% while KOSPI dropping -2.39%. Mainland Chinese stocks, China's Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong's Hang Seng also retreated -0.90% and -1.97%, while Nikkei 225 down -0.73%, Singapore’s down -1.95%, and Australia S&P/ASX 200 loss by -1.10%.
Markets in Indonesia and Malaysia are closed on Thursday for a holiday.
Wall Street stocks retreated and closed lower on the Fed news yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.31%, the S&P 500 lost 0.44% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.57%.
OIL
Oil prices edged lower on Thursday over lingering concerns of weak global fuel demand after data showed that U.S. crude stockpiles fell 1.6 million barrels last week.
Brent crude futures traded to $44.96 a barrel, while U.S. crude at $42.51.
On Wednesday, Brent closed at $45.27 per barrel, while WTI futures ended at $42.93 per barrel.
CURRENCIES
A heavily shorted greenback put on its biggest one-day surge since March after the release, hitting 93.05 against a basket of currencies, about 1% above Tuesday’s two-year trough.
The Japanese yen traded at 106.07 per dollar following a weakening yesterday from levels below 105.6 against the greenback. The Australian dollar tumbled back below 72 cents and last sat at $0.7173.
GOLD
Gold currently trading at $1,934.90 per ounce, while stands around $1,937.00 per ounce for gold futures. Previously closed at $1,927.90 and $1,970.30, respectively.
Silver trading at $26.90, platinum trading at $926.00 and palladium trading at $2,050.00.
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
Asian equities were set to follow Wall Street’s late session retreat yesterday as investors react to the overnight release of July meeting minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policymaking body.
FOMC meeting concluded that the ongoing situation surrounding the coronavirus pandemic could “weigh heavily on economic activity, employment, and inflation in the near term and was posing considerable risks to the economic outlook over the medium term,” according to the meeting minutes. Meanwhile, the U.S. central bank kept rates unchanged last month.
China announced no changed to its benchmark lending rate, with the one-year loan prime rate (LPR) kept at 3.85%, while the five-year LPR was on hold at 4.65%.
To date, number of confirmed worldwide cases for COVID-19 pandemic has surpassed 22.577 million affecting 213 countries and territories around the world and 2 international conveyances, recording more than 791 thousand fatality globally.
TECHNICAL OUTLOOK
[USDJPY]
Important Levels to Watch for Today:
- Resistance line of 106.182 and 106.851.
- Support line of 105.355 and 104.687.
Commentary/ Reason:
- The Japanese yen weakened 0.62% to 106.08 per dollar.
- Both Stochastic and RSI oscillators are retreating from overvalued ranges into normal ranges.
- The MACD is trading below its signal line and positive.
