Markets Overview

  • ASX SPI 200 futures down 1.0% to 6,838.00
  • Dow Average down 0.9% to 31,510.43
  • Aussie down 0.2% to 0.6842 per US$
  • U.S. 10-year yield rose 8.9bps to 3.1907%
  • Australia 3-year bond yield fell 3.9 bps to 3.21%
  • Australia 10-year bond yield fell 0.9 bps to 3.60%
  • Gold spot down 0.8% to $1,711.01
  • Brent futures down 2.8% to $96.49/bbl

Economic Events

  • 09:00: (AU) Aug. S&P Global Australia PMI Mfg, prior 54.5
  • 10:30: (AU) Australia to Sell A$1 Billion 70-Day Bills
  • 10:30: (AU) Australia to Sell A$500 Million 105-Day Bills
  • 10:30: (AU) Australia to Sell A$500 Million 161-Day Bills
  • 11:30: (AU) July Investor Loan Value MoM, est. -4.0%, prior -6.3%
  • 11:30: (AU) July Owner-Occupier Loan Value MoM, est. -2.8%, prior -3.3%
  • 11:30: (AU) July Home Loans Value MoM, est. -3.5%, prior -4.4%
  • 11:30: (AU) 2Q Private Capital Expenditure, est. 1.0%, prior -0.3%
  • 16:30: (AU) Aug. Commodity Index SDR YoY, prior 14.1%
  • 16:30: (AU) Aug. Commodity Index AUD, prior 151.3

Other News

For the UK to gain a new leader next week, both Boris Johnson and his successor will have to make the 800-mile (1,300-kilometer) round trip to a Scottish castle to see Queen Elizabeth II.

In usual years, the outgoing leader is driven from 10 Downing Street to Buckingham Palace less than a mile away to present their resignation to the monarch. Their successor then makes the same trip, trailed over the short distance by TV cameras and news helicopters.

The Queen is the head of state, and the winner of this summer’s Conservative Party leadership contest must meet her before they can take power. Elizabeth II will invite the winner — either Foreign Secretary Liz Truss or former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak — to form a government, a process known as “kissing hands.” This is due to happen on Tuesday, a day after the results of the Tory race are revealed.

The monarch — who largely stays out of politics except to appoint prime ministers and hold regular meetings with them — has appointed every one of the 14 prime ministers during her 70-year rule in this way until now.

After meeting the Queen, the new leader then heads back to Downing Street for their first official speech.

But this year the Queen — who is 96 and has mobility issues — will break with tradition and appoint the new prime minister at Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands, where she spends her summers, a spokesperson said on Wednesday. The decision to stay in Scotland was made to provide certainty and avoid any last-minute changes to the political handover, AP reported, citing Buckingham Palace officials.

The new prime minister, and Johnson, are likely to fly from London to Balmoral for the handover. A car trip would take about nine hours each way.