Markets Overview
- ASX SPI 200 futures up 0.2% to 7,472.00
- Dow Average up 1.0% to 34,564.59
- Aussie little changed at 0.7454 per US$
- U.S. 10-year yield fell 2.1bps to 2.7006%
- Australia 3-year bond yield fell 6bps to 2.50%
- Australia 10-year bond yield fell 0.7bps to 3.07%
- Gold spot up 0.6% to $1,977.79
- Brent futures up 4.0% to $108.85/bbl
Economic Events
- 10:30am: (AU) Australia to Sell A$1 Billion 94-Day Bills
- 10:30am: (AU) Australia to Sell A$500 Million 115-Day Bills
- 11am: (AU) April Consumer Inflation Expectation, prior 4.9%
- 11:30am: (AU) March Full Time Employment Change, prior 121,900
- 11:30am: (AU) March Part Time Employment Change, prior -44,500
- 11:30am: (AU) March Participation Rate, est. 66.5%, prior 66.4%
- 11:30am: (AU) March Employment Change, est. 30,000, prior 77,400
- 11:30am: (AU) March Unemployment Rate, est. 3.9%, prior 4.0%
Another decline in Treasury two-year yields — which are more sensitive to imminent monetary-policy decisions — took this week’s slide to about 16 basis points. Bond yields fell even after data showing prices paid to U.S. producers jumped the most on record, topping all estimates. That stands in contrast with the latest consumer-price report, which showed a softening in the pace of core inflation. For analysts, the big moves across the front-end of the Treasury market reflect easing bets on how far the Fed will tighten policy in the current business cycle.
Other News
Despite the warm reception from speech attendees in Iowa, Mr Biden’s first trip to Iowa since his election as president in November of 2020 wasn’t without a blemish.
President Joe Biden’s day in Iowa took a colorful turn when he was pooped on by a bird while speaking to a crowd about his plan to help Americans struggling with soaring inflation in a barn in the town of Menlo.
