ECONOMY
On Tuesday, Investor caution ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate meeting capped Asian stocks, while crude oil prices retreated as global growth worries overshadowed supply concerns stemming from recent Middle East tensions.
The Fed, facing fresh demands by U.S. President Donald Trump to cut interest rates, begins a two-day meeting later on Tuesday. The central bank is expected to leave borrowing costs unchanged this time but possibly lay the groundwork for a rate cut later this year.
Focus is now on how close the Fed could be to cutting interest rates amid the raging U.S.-China trade war, signs of the economy losing steam and pressure by President Trump to ease policy.
Iraqi Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr urged political blocs on Monday to pressure the prime minister to form a complete cabinet within 10 days, warning that his supporters would take a “new stance” if they failed to do so.
BONDS
U.S. Treasury yields dipped on Monday after the New York Fed’s “Empire” gauge of business growth in the state showed a fall this month to its weakest in more than 2-1/2-years, fanning rate cut expectations.
FOREX
The British pound on Tuesday languished near this year's low on rising worries Boris Johnson, the front-runner to replace UK Prime Minister Theresa May, could put Britain on a path towards a dreaded no-deal Brexit.
The Australian dollar is also at its lowest levels since the flash crash of early January, hit by growing expectations of another rate cut by the country's central bank and by the specter of a further slowdown in China - Australia's largest export market.
The yen and the euro were steadier, with investors holding out for trading clues from policy-setting meetings by the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan as well as a conference organized by the European Central Bank, all scheduled this week.
COMMODITY
Oil prices steadied on Tuesday, caught between rising tensions in the Middle East and signs that economic growth is being hit by trade tensions between the United States and China.
Brent crude futures were up 4 cents at $60.98 a barrel. They fell 1.68% in the previous session on concerns about slowing global growth.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were 1 cent lower at $51.92. They dropped 1.09% on Monday.
Comments