Major Markets Stall In Wait For Guidance From U.S. Bond Markets Re-Opening

 | Nov 29, 2019 08:03

Market Overview

With traders in the US busy eating their Thanksgiving turkey, major markets have seen time for a consolidation. In the absence of US bond markets, in a time of yield differentials being key, this means a period of quiet. There is yet to be any significant reaction to Donald Trump signing into law the Congressional bills supporting Hong Kong. Equally there has been little reaction to China’s response which warns of “firm counter measures”. The question is whether the two sides can leave the issue of Hong Kong and that of “phase one” of a trade agreement as mutually exclusive. Without US bond markets for guidance, reaction across major markets has been muted.

We could get more of an indication today with US bond markets open for a half day this morning, but again liquidity will be reduced and we may not get a true reflection until Monday. There is very little direction of note on the G4 currencies, whilst gold is again almost dead flat. There is still a broad expectation that moves towards a rudimental trade agreement are still progressing. Risk appetite is still cautious this morning (equities lower, whilst mild weakness for the Chinese yuan is also a reflection of this) but we are still buyers of risk into weakness. Watch for some elevated volatility on the euro this morning, with flash Eurozone inflation on the agenda.

Wall Street was shit for Thanksgiving yesterday, but US futures are -0.3% this morning. Asian markets slipping slightly overnight, with the Nikkei -0.5% whilst Shanghai Composite -0.6%. European markets are again a shade cautious this morning with FTSE futures and DAX futures -0.3%, both following the US.

In forex, there is almost zero direction to speak of across major pairs. In commodities, there is also no notable direction on gold or silver, whilst oil is also flat.

With the US still digesting Thanksgiving turkey, there is a focus on Eurozone inflation on the economic calendar today. Flash Eurozone HICP for November is at 1000GMT is expected to see headline inflation improve to +1.3% (from +1.2% in October), whilst core inflation is expected to improve to +1.2% (from +1.1% in October). Eurozone Unemployment for October is at 1000GMT and is expected to remain at 7.5% (7.5% in October).

Chart of the Day – AUD/JPY

Despite the relative pressure that the Aussie has been under in recent weeks through the major forex crosses, we continue to see the broad positive risk appetite reflected through AUD/JPY. The three month uptrend continues to track higher and underpin the market. A test of the pivot band resistance is now underway and could be the key turning point for the next bull run. There is resistance being tested now at 74.30/74.50 and this week, the resistance band has formed the barrier. It comes as momentum indicators turn higher around key levels. The RSI has again turned higher around 40, whilst MACD lines are bottoming out around neutral, whilst Stochastics are swinging higher from a bull cross. There is undoubtedly a squeeze coming with the three month uptrend up at 73.80 today, but the bulls are positioning for renewed upside. A close above 74.50 is still needed, and yesterday’s negative candle has not helped the bulls. However, there is still an uptrend to be bought into and the bulls are finding support at higher levels again. Support at 73.35/73.50 is increasingly important now.