Macro Roundup (May 20)

SHANGHAI, May 20 (SMM) – This is a roundup of global macroeconomic news last night and what is expected in the day ahead.

The US dollar slipped to its lowest in more than two weeks against a basket of its peers on Tuesday, as encouraging results from the trial of a vaccine for COVID-19, Franco-German proposal for recovery fund, a recovery in German investor sentiment supported market sentiment while investors monitored Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s virtual hearing on the state of the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic.

However, concerns emerged about the trial results for a potential coronavirus vaccine from Moderna, which gave a hit to US stocks which snapped a three-day winning streak on Tuesday.

Oil prices rose on Tuesday amid signs that producers are cutting output as promised and on signs of increasing demand as more countries ease out of curbs imposed to counter the coronavirus pandemic.

LME base metals ticked broadly lower Wednesday morning, erasing gains from the previous session. On Tuesday, nonferrous metals, except for aluminium, on the LME rose for a second straight day, with nickel advancing 1.8% to be the best performer. Tin jumped 1.2%, lead rose 1.1%, zinc climbed 0.5%, copper inched up 0.1%, while aluminium retreated 0.8%.

On the SHFE, those nonferrous metals performed similarly in overnight trading. Tin surged 1.5%, nickel rose 1.2%, lead gained 0.2% and copper edged up 0.1%, while zinc dipped 0.06% and aluminium fell 0.4%.

Germany and France, whose agreements usually pave the way for broader EU deals, proposed that the European Commission borrow 500 billion euros ($550 billion) on behalf of the whole EU. The Commission is expected to outline their proposal before a European summit scheduled for May 27.

Fed chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin testified to the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday the Treasury and the Federal Reserve are “fully prepared to take losses” on the remaining capital from the coronavirus bailouts. Mnuchin said before the Senate Banking Committee he is prepared to distribute the entire $500 billion appropriated to help struggling businesses impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Powell also reiterated the central bank’s commitment to programs aimed at keeping markets functioning and getting money to those who need it during the coronavirus crisis.

Data on Tuesday showed US home construction starts posted the worst monthly decline on record in April. Housing starts tumbled 30.17% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 891,000 units last month, a five year low, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday.

Germany’s closely-watched ZEW survey of economic sentiment for May showed a much greater-than-expected improvement on Tuesday, with consumers hoping for an economic recovery in the second half of the year as Europe’s largest economy looks to exit lockdown measures.

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported late Tuesday that US crude supplies fell by 4.8 million barrels for the week ended May 15. The API data also reportedly showed gasoline stockpiles edged down by 651,000 barrels, while distillate inventories climbed by 5.1 million barrels.

The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will release its weekly crude inventory report on Wednesday.

The monthly fixing of China’s loan prime rate is set to be released at around 9:30 a.m. Beijing time on Wednesday, with little expectation for the benchmark lending rate to change.

The eurozone’s consumer inflation data for April and consumer sentiment index for May are also due Wednesday.