Macro Roundup (Aug 22)

SHANGHAI, Aug 22 (SMM) – This is a roundup of global macroeconomic news last night and what is expected today.

Last night

The dollar rose against the safe-haven yen and Swiss Franc, as risk appetite increased with global stocks and US yields were mostly higher ahead of an annual Federal Reserve gathering later this week in Jackson Hole and a summit of major central banks this weekend.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies, rallied some 0.15% and finished at 98.3.

LME base metals closed mixed while SHFE metals ended mostly higher. LME zinc advanced 2%, lead grew 0.7%, copper increased 0.2%, while nickel lost 0.2%, aluminium fell 0.3%, and tin slid 1%. 

SHFE zinc increased 1%, lead gained 0.7%, copper went up 0.2%, nickel rallied 0.1%, while tin fell 0.5%, and aluminium edged lower. 

The CME FedWatch tool estimated 98.1% chance of a 25 basis point interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve next month. Concerns about global economic uncertainty helped spur the Fed to reduce rates in July for the first time since the 2008 financial crisis.

US consumers signed more contracts to buy existing homes than expected in June. So-called pending home sales rose 2.8% compared with May, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were 1.6% higher than June 2018, the first annual gain in 17 months. 

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday reported that US crude supplies fell by 2.73 million barrels for the week ended August 16. That followed increases in each of the previous two weeks. Gasoline stocks rose by 312,000 barrels, while distillate supplies grew by 2.6 million barrels.

Day ahead

Economic data slated for release today include the August Markit manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) for Germany, the eurozone, and the US, the US weekly unemployment claims, and the eurozone consumer confidence index for August.