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Macro Roundup (Aug 11)

iconAug 11, 2021 08:30
Source:SMM
The US dollar touched a its highest level in more than four months against the euro on Tuesday, as investors speculated further over whether recent strong jobs data could be enough to push the Federal Reserve to soon start tapering its bond-buying program.

SHANGHAI, Aug 11 (SMM) — This is a roundup of global macroeconomic news last night and what is expected today.

The US dollar touched a its highest level in more than four months against the euro on Tuesday, as investors speculated further over whether recent strong jobs data could be enough to push the Federal Reserve to soon start tapering its bond-buying program.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, was up for a third straight session, at its highest level in about three weeks.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was down 2% at $45,352.58, having hit a three-month high of $46,759 overnight. Ether was down 1.29% at $3,126.01.

On Wall Street, US stock index futures were flat during overnight trading on Tuesday, after the Dow and S&P 500 closed at record highs following the Senate passing the $1 trillion infrastructure bill.

Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were slightly higher. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were flat.

During regular trading, the Dow gained 162.82 points, or 0.46%, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.1%. Both hit all-time intraday highs while also closing at records. The Nasdaq Composite slid 0.49%, registering its second negative session in the last three. The dip came as treasury yields advanced, weighing on growth-oriented areas of the market.

The Senate passed the infrastructure bill Tuesday, which earmarks $550 billion in new spending for areas including transportation and the electric grid. The bill now heads to the House, although Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has said she will not bring it to the floor until the Senate also passes a budgetary proposal.

Oil prices rose on Tuesday, recouping some of their losses in the previous session, as rising demand in Europe and the United States outweighed concerns over an increase in COVID cases in Asian countries.

Brent crude gained $1.59, or 2.3%, to settle at $70.63 per barrel and US oil settled $1.81, or 2.7%, higher at $68.29 per barrel.

Both contracts dropped around 2.5% on Monday, but analysts believe the pandemic setback will not last for long.

“This turbulence should remain temporary, not the least as Western world oil demand is back at, or above, pre-pandemic levels and is draining global supplies,” said Nortbert Ruecker, analyst at Swiss bank Julius Baer.

Gold edged up on Tuesday, pausing its steep sell-off on some lingering doubts over the economic impact of the new Delta COVID-19 variant, though a rally in the dollar and bond yields continued to grip the market.

Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,730.93 per ounce by 1:37 p.m. EDT, while US gold futures settled up 0.3% at $1,731.70.

The precious metal slid as much as 4.4% on Monday, as expectations the US Federal Reserve could begin tempering its economic support sooner than previously anticipated were solidified by a strong US jobs report on Friday.

Though the metal has somewhat recovered from Monday’s lows, it remains pressured by a strengthened US dollar and 10-year benchmark Treasury yields on the back of Fed tapering bets.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 provisionally closed up by 0.4%, with travel and leisure stocks adding 2% to lead gains.

European companies reporting earnings on Tuesday include HelloFresh, Munich Re and ABRDN.

Germany’s ZEW survey of economic sentiment for August missed expectations by a significant margin.

Macroeconomics

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