Asia equities are mixed
Asian markets calm after US yields rise
Cyclical rotation flows dominated Wall Street on Friday, as US bond yields suddenly spiked higher. Technology bore the brunt of the assault, the Nasdaq falling 0.59%, while the S&P 500 roses just 0.10%, while the Dow Jones climbed by 0.90%. Dovish comments by Treasury Secretary Yellen over the weekend see the futures on all three indexes up by 0.20% this morning, lending a sense of calm to Asian equities.
The Nikkei 225 is 0.30% higher today, while the Kospi is now unchanged. Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite has recovered some earlier losses but is still down by 0.40%, with the CSI 300 has fallen by 0.95%. Today’s China data was mixed, and retail sentiment remains fragile. This week, it will be interesting to see if China’s “national team” steps in once again if markets move sharply lower.
Canadian dollar hits 4-week high
February 19, 2021SharePrint
The Canadian dollar has posted slight gains on Friday. Currently, USD/CAD is trading at 1.2646, down 0.24% on the day.
Canadian dollar closes in on 1.26 line
The Canadian dollar has been creeping higher since mid-week. Earlier in the day, USD/CAD dropped to a low of 1.2609, its lowest level in four weeks. The US dollar eased overnight, and the dollar index has dropped on Friday 0.38%, to 90.24. There is support at 90.00, and a daily close below this level would signal a downtrend for the US currency.
Investors brace for soft retail sales
Canada releases retail sales reports for December later in the day (13:30 GMT). The release follows US retail sales earlier this week, but the numbers are expected to be much worse. US retail sales sizzled in January, with a gain of 5.3%, good enough for a seven-month high. The street consensus call for declines of -2.5% for headline retail sales and -2.4% for core retail sales, res
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Canada ADP jobs report plunges
February 18, 2021SharePrint
The Canadian dollar is down slightly in the Thursday session. Currently, USD/CAD is trading at 1.2703, up 0.02% on the day.
Loonie yawns as ADP nonfarm payrolls slides
Canada’s ADP nonfarm payrolls report has managed just one gain over the past five months, pointing to weakness in the labor market. After a small decline in December of -28.8 thousand, January was a disaster, with the economy shedding some 231.2 thousand jobs. The ADP report comes after the official Stats Canada release two weeks ago (Employment Change), which came in at -212.8 thousand, its worst reading since April 2020, when the economy was largely shut down due to Covid-19. These releases point to significant weakness in Canada’s labor market. Still, investors did not pay all that much attention to the ADP report, perhaps expecting a sharp decline after the official release. The response of the Canadian dollar has been muted on Thursday.
US retail sales surged in January as government stimulus checks boosted consumer confidence, the National Retail Federation (NRF) said.Revenues grew 7% year on year, and were up 5% over December’s total, which included holiday sales results, according to data the US Census Bureau reported.