US jobs in focus, China raises interest rates... Three-year high for gold demand...
US jobs in focus, China raises interest rates
While the markets await US jobs data Friday there was a surprise overnight for Asian markets as the People’s Bank of China announced an increase in interest rates.
The PBOC increased the short-term lending rate to 2.35 per cent, up 10 basis points, but analysts say it is not the start of tightening of liquidity as money supply has not been cut.
Mainland China’s equity market re-opened after the Lunar New Year break and closed lower along with most other major Asian indexes. Tokyo’s Nikkei closed flat.
European markets are trending higher with US jobs data in focus along with an EU summit to discuss issues including migrants and Brexit. Regional data shows weaker-than-expected retail sales for the Eurozone.
News that a French soldier has shot a machete-wielding attacker outside Paris’ Louvre has been described as “terrorist in nature.” Markets have not reacted so far to the incident.
Wall Street and Toronto are expected to open higher ahead of US jobs data.
Three-year high for gold demand
The traditional safe-haven for investors has seen a positive trend amid political uncertainty, the World Gold Council said Friday.
It reports that demand for gold was at a three-year high in 2016 as concern including Brexit and the US presidential election steered investors to alternatives to equities and bonds.
The 2 per cent rise through exchange-traded funds amounted to 4,309 metric tonnes and was also impacted to uncertainty surrounding US interest rates.
The WGC says there has been a rise in demand for gold since President Trump began setting out policies.
While the markets await US jobs data Friday there was a surprise overnight for Asian markets as the People’s Bank of China announced an increase in interest rates.
The PBOC increased the short-term lending rate to 2.35 per cent, up 10 basis points, but analysts say it is not the start of tightening of liquidity as money supply has not been cut.
Mainland China’s equity market re-opened after the Lunar New Year break and closed lower along with most other major Asian indexes. Tokyo’s Nikkei closed flat.
European markets are trending higher with US jobs data in focus along with an EU summit to discuss issues including migrants and Brexit. Regional data shows weaker-than-expected retail sales for the Eurozone.
News that a French soldier has shot a machete-wielding attacker outside Paris’ Louvre has been described as “terrorist in nature.” Markets have not reacted so far to the incident.
Wall Street and Toronto are expected to open higher ahead of US jobs data.
| Latest | 1 month ago | 1 year ago | |
| North America (previous session) |
|||
| US Dow Jones | 19,884.91 (-0.03 per cent) | +0.02 per cent | +21.72 per cent |
| TSX Composite | 15,399.11 (-0.02 per cent) | -0.03 per cent | +22.28 per cent |
| Europe (at 5.00am ET) |
|||
| UK FTSE | 7,167.84 (+0.38 per cent) | -0.14 per cent | +22.80 per cent |
| German DAX | 11,642.07 (+0.12 per cent) | +0.50 per cent | +23.39 per cent |
| Asia (at close) |
|||
| China CSI 300 | 3,364.49 (-0.69 per cent) | +1.45 per cent | +14.82 per cent |
| Japan Nikkei | 18,918.20 (+0.02 per cent) | -1.03 per cent | +10.05 per cent |
| Other Data (at 5.00am ET) |
|||
| Oil (Brent) | Oil (WTI) | Gold | Can. Dollar |
| 56.84 (+0.50 per cent) |
53.76 (+0.41 per cent) |
1215.00 (-0.36 per cent) |
U$0.7670 |
| Aus. Dollar |
|||
| U$0.7647 | |||
Three-year high for gold demand
The traditional safe-haven for investors has seen a positive trend amid political uncertainty, the World Gold Council said Friday.
It reports that demand for gold was at a three-year high in 2016 as concern including Brexit and the US presidential election steered investors to alternatives to equities and bonds.
The 2 per cent rise through exchange-traded funds amounted to 4,309 metric tonnes and was also impacted to uncertainty surrounding US interest rates.
The WGC says there has been a rise in demand for gold since President Trump began setting out policies.
