Macro Roundup (Jul 8)

SHANGHAI, Jul 8 (SMM) – This is a roundup of global macroeconomic news last night and what is expected today.

The US dollar inched higher against a basket of currencies on Tuesday, holding above the near two-week low hit in the previous session, as investors turned uneasy over new coronavirus flare-ups and local lockdowns in some countries.

Stocks on Wall Street and oil prices, meanwhile, fell.

Nonferrous metals traded mixed on Tuesday. On the LME, lead and copper advanced 0.9% on the day, zinc rose 0.7%, while aluminium and nickel closed flat. Tin shed 0.7%.

On the SHFE, copper climbed 0.9% in overnight trading, lead rose close to 0.8% and zinc edged up 0.03%, while nickel dipped 0.1%, tin shed 0.2% and aluminium lost 0.9%.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) announced Tuesday its decision to maintain its current policy.

The European Commission on Tuesday cut its economic forecasts, and now expects the 27-member region to contract by 8.3% this year, followed by a rebound of 5.8% in 2021. In May, the Commission estimated a 7.4% contraction for total GDP across the region this year, with a rebound of 6.1% in 2021.

German industrial production data came in weaker than expected on Tuesday, rising by 7.8% in May, a more modest rebound than the 10% expected by analysts following a -17.5% contraction in April.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported late Tuesday that US crude supplies rose by 2 million barrels for the week ended July 3. The API data also showed gasoline stockpiles fell by 1.8 million barrels, while distillate inventories declined by about 847,000 barrels. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Okla., storage hub, meanwhile, edged up by 2.2 million barrels for the week.

Inventory data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) will be released Wednesday.

China’s foreign-exchange reserves rose in June for a third straight month amid a weakening dollar and eased outflow pressure, official data showed Tuesday.

The country’s hoard of foreign exchange increased by $10.64 billion to $3.112 trillion at the end of June, according to data released by the People’s Bank of China. Economists had expected an $18 billion rise in reserves in June. In May, China’s foreign-exchange reserves increased by $10.23 billion.