Close: London Session | Forex, Metals, Oil, Agriculture March 29, 2021

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Agriculture

A few months ago, Nike and H&M expressed concern about forced labor in Xinjiang’s cotton industry, and last week faced consumer boycotts and backlash in China.

Currencies

Smaller losses were recorded by the Australian dollar (-1.24%), the Swiss franc (-1.14%), the euro (-0.91%), the Japanese yen (-0.75%), the Canadian dollar (-0.54%), and the British pound (-0.56%). The dollar held steady, while the prospect of tougher coronavirus curbs in France and Germany weighed on the euro. The U.S. dollar held steady, while the prospect of tougher coronavirus curbs in France and Germany weighed on the euro. less Gold prices fell on Monday as the improving global economic outlook boosted the U.S. dollar, Treasury yields and the global equities markets.
He added that the rupee is up by 4 per cent against the US dollar for FY21 despite having much higher interest rates and inflation than the US. The stronger greenback made the dollar more expensive for investors using rival currencies, and the higher yields raised the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding bullion. less Major currencies closed lower against the US dollar at the end of last week.
Also, the stock market remains close to all-time highs, despite the dollar gaining some momentum recently. “We expect the currency will be averaging anywhere between 74.50-75 a dollar in the first half FY21-22 amid ongoing global risk-off sentiment,” Iyer said. As always, the NFP report is accompanied by other relevant pieces of economic data that may shift the dollar on their own.

Metals

CMC Markets chief market strategist Michael McCarthy said the Treasury yields are a big threat to gold prices in the near term. He is an analyst at www.thegoldanalyst.com which is a website aimed at offering quality analysis of gold prices. That may see crude oil and gold remain on the defensive if the “block trades” saga truly extends into broader liquidation. Radomski is the author of Sunshine Profits’ Gold & Silver Trading Alerts and many of company’s investment tools.
less Crude oil and gold prices wobbled at the start of the week. BEFORE THE BELL Futures for Canada’s main stock index fell dragged down by subdued gold prices. S&P 500 futures dropped, the 10-year Treasury yield was at 1.657%, oil was lower and gold fell. Anti-fiat gold suffered by extension, despite lower yields. Gold, silver and the miners will eventually rise, but for the medium-term, they are still in bearish territory. Gold prices were lower.

Oil

Saudi seaborne crude exports for last week were seen at 31.6 million bbl (4.5 million bpd) compared to the revised 45.1 million bbl (6.4 million bpd) the week prior. Sinopec, Asia’s largest oil refiner and China’s second-largest oil and gas producer, plans to increase capital expenditure to 167.2 billion yuan ($25.55 billion), up from 135.1 billion in 2020. Crude oil imports into the Mediterranean (MED) recovered to 31.87 mmbbl, up from 26.11 mmbbl in the previous week.
8.21 mmbbl of oil loaded last week was showing China as its destination, while 3.68 mmbbl were moving to India. Oil production in the U.S. did rise to 11 million barrels a day, still, 2 million barrels a day below the pre-pandemic peak. The data exclude trader positions in the NYMEX financial crude oil futures contract, which is normally included in our aggregate calculations. Crude oil prices are struggling to build upward momentum on a retest of former resistance near the $60/bbl figure.
Ust-Luga loaded 3.63 mmbbl of oil, up from 2.9 mmbbl in the previous week. Abu Dhabi plans to relinquish control over prices of Murban to investors and traders, a major step in efforts to fortify its position in the international oil market. Margin values remained volatile due to gyrating crude oil prices.

United States

BEFORE THE BELL Wall Street futures slipped, as major lenders came under pressure on concerns over the possible spillover effects of a hedge fund’s default on margin calls. Wall Street futures slipped, as major lenders came under pressure on concerns over the possible spillover effects of a hedge fund’s default on margin calls. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said on Thursday that massive fiscal stimulus and a faster vaccine rollout have set the recovery on a much quicker pace than anyone expected.
It’s problematic for the broad market since these big and high-profile NASDAQ names (mostly) set the tone – and pace – for the market itself.
The Fed will keep accommodation in place until recovery is “well and truly done,” is the way Fed Vice Chairman Richard Clarida put it, echoing Daly’s remark almost verbatim. On the road ahead, Vijayakumar noted that markets are likely to remain buoyant since the US Federal Reserve is committed to keep interest rates near zero through 2023. Hot technology firms and blank-check merger companies have tumbled from their highs, pushing the Nasdaq Composite Index down 8% from its latest record close last month.
Since leaving Wall Street I’ve dedicated my financial career towards studying this situation and helping people understand what’s actually happening. It is a quiet start to the week for monetary policy speeches with only Fed Governor Chris Waller scheduled to speak today. A survey by Swiss bank UBS shows that 39% of people would be comfortable traveling now, compared with only 29% a month ago.

China

Beijing’s temporary sanctions on Australian wine, in place for months, has formally been extended to five years. But Beijing’s ambitions will ultimately depend on the country’s vibrant private sector, too. WSJ explains how Beijing is pouring money into high-tech chips as it wants to become self-sufficient. Beijing also sanctioned a member of the Canadian parliament too.

Europe

Step by step | Britain and the European Union took their first step since Brexit to cooperate on financial services, agreeing on a new forum to discuss market regulation. The UK government says that the program is still on target despite the recent supply problems and the ongoing vaccination nationalism spat with the European Union. In the U.K., airlines reported a surge in bookings to southern Europe right after Prime Minister Boris Johnson said international trips might resume on May 17.
It s a blunt political instrument, and one rarely used.It s a sign of her exasperation that Merkel s even considering it. In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel has threatened to exert federal authority over regions on Covid restrictions as cases mount. less In economic terms, France is one of many losers in the EU (see this post). Tensions between the EU and the UK over exports of vaccines are not resolved, and Britain is still set to face a slowdown in supplies.
For starters, the EU has spent the least in covid relief as a percentage of GDP of all the major economies. Flavia Krause-Jackson Merkel speaking in the Bundestag last week on the Covid-19 pandemic. A year from now voters will cast their verdict on Macron s performance amid mounting evidence his self-confidence is a turn-off.

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