Markets subdued ahead of US inflation report - 15.5.2024

The Dollar weakening is intact currently . The live dollar index data show the ICE US Dollar index, a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, lost 0.2% on Tuesday.

Both GBP/USD and EUR/USD continued their advancing yesterday while the Office for National Statistic data showed UK unemployment rate ticked up slightly in March. Both euro and Pound are higher against the dollar currently. USD/JPY slowed its advancing on Tuesday while AUD/USD accelerated its climbing with both the yen and Australian dollar higher against the Greenback currently.

Futures on three main US stock indexes are mixed currently with the yield on benchmark 10-year US notes down at 4.441%. Stock indexes ended up on Tuesday with three main stock benchmarks recording daily gains in a range from 0.3% to 0.75% while Fed chair Powell said he did not expect the central bank’s next interest rate move to be a hike despite April’s producer price index reading coming in above expectations.

European stock indexes are mixed currently after closing marginally up on Tuesday with auto stocks leading gains. Asian indexes futures are mixed today with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index leading losses after President Biden unveiled a list of steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports including electric vehicles, computer chips and medical products.

Brent is edging up currently. Prices ended lower yesterday while the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries - OPEC maintained its forecast for world oil demand in its monthly report to rise by 2.25 million barrels per day in 2024 and 1.85M bpd in 2025. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) will release its US inventory data at 16:30 CET today. The US oil benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 1.4% but is higher today. Brent lost 1.1% to $82.42 a barrel on Tuesday.