Originally published by Rivkin Securities
US stock markets traded lower for the early part of yesterday’s session but managed a rally later in the day to recover the losses. The S&P 500 actually closed slightly positive at +0.25% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average wasn’t quite able to return to positive territory. The Nasdaq 100 actually managed a 1.1% gain although it wasn’t good news for Snapchat (NYSE:SNAP) shares in after hours trading as the price dropped 15% due to weaker than expected results. Snapchat missed on both revenue forecasts and active daily user growth.
US bond yields didn’t climb any higher overnight but the 10-year yield still hovers just below 3.0%. The Federal Reserve is due to meet for its six-weekly meeting early tomorrow morning although the probability of a rate hike is quite low. According to the CME Fedwatch tool, there is just a 5% chance of a hike at this meeting. It is much more likely that it will hike at the following meeting in June. Although the yield curve has been flattening, further increases in short term interest rates will likely also feed through into longer term rates.
The US Dollar Index has been one of the strongest performing assets recently, climbing another 0.7% overnight. This has sent the Australian dollar lower to US$0.7485, a new year-to-date low and has weighed on assets priced in US dollar. The gold price, for example, has now fallen 3.3% from its recent highs, currently trading at US$1,305. Oil prices have also trended lower as a result of the stronger dollar as well as an inventory report showing an unexpected crude build.
Data Releases:
- US FOMC Rate Decision 4:00am AEST
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