Open: New York Session | Forex, Metals, Oil, Agriculture October 30, 2020

A member of the National Guard plays a trumpet during a flag rai

Agriculture

In its monthly update, the inter-governmental body reduced its global corn crop forecast by 4 million tonnes to 1.156 billion tonnes. The coffee chain forecast 2021 earnings largely above estimates on Thursday, helped by strong online orders and a recovery in demand following the initial hit from the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, coffee needs are mostly price locked for fiscal 2021.

Currencies

The dollar index was little changed ahead of the U.S. election next week. That is to say, a $10,000 investment made at 75 cents on the dollar buys you claim of over $13,000 in debt principal and its security interest. The dollar index fell 0.2% against a basket of currencies, making bullion cheaper for holders of other currencies. The dollar index was slightly lower ahead of the U.S. election next week. Asian stocks also declined and the dollar gave back some of the gains made in the previous session.
Negotiations on the longstanding row resumed on Oct. 27, days after U.S. President Trump suggested Egypt could blow up the multi-billion dollar structure. In global markets, gold prices edged higher today due to weakness in the US dollar. The rapid recovery seen in China and the weaker dollar have also encouraged the bulls. As well, China’s currency has maintained its strength even as the US dollar put in a sharp rally. We’ll also have GDP, inflation and unemployment data for the euro area.What We ve Been ReadingThis is what s caught our eye over the past 24 hours.

Metals

(The HUI to gold ratio remains at very low levels, indicating that gold miners might be undervalued compared to physical gold. Below, I’m compared Agnico Eagle Mines to a few of its most similar peers: Yamana Gold (AUY), Kirkland Lake Gold (KL), and Kinross Gold (KGC). Not surprisingly, the gold miner reported a stellar quarter, mainly due to the rise in gold prices to over $1,900/oz. Yet, Agnico’s stock was down sharply today like many other gold miners given the drop in gold prices, which fell by more than 1%.
Agnico is a senior gold miner that has guided for between 1.68 and 1.73 million ounces of gold production at all-in sustaining costs between $1,025and $1,075/oz. I believe the recent drop in gold and gold mining stocks has left investors with plenty of good value buys to choose from. Agnico operates several gold mines in North America, including its 50%-owned Canadian Malartic mine in Quebec which has produced 179,016 ounces of gold year to date.
The Perth Mint sold 579,644 oz of gold bullion Jan-Sep this year versus 223,821 oz in 2019. Elsewhere, a look at very weak oil markets, the key support levels for gold, FX themes and signs of strong turnout in the US election. Tracking international cues, gold prices in domestic markets also edged higher after two days of decline.

Oil

Chevron posts profit on deep cost cuts, improved oil prices Chevron reported an adjusted third-quarter profit as oil prices recovered from spring lows and spending cuts benefited operating results. Total trimmed its oil and gas output forecast for the year to under 2.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, from a previous 2.9-2.95 mboepd estimate. The oil producer reported an adjusted third-quarter profit as oil prices recovered from spring lows and spending cuts benefited operating results.
Amid declining oil prices Chevron said it implemented aggressive cost-cutting measures.The oil giant lost $207 million during the quarter. Including unfunded lending commitments, ZION’s total exposure to the oil and gas sector was $4,329 million at the end of the last quarter, as mentioned in the earnings release. The French oil and gas producer trimmed its 2020 investment target after a sharp drop in third-quarter net profit, though the company maintained its dividend.
De-facto OPEC leader Saudi Arabia and non-OPEC Russia are in favour of extending existing oil production cuts of around 7.7 million barrels per day (bpd) into next year. Gasoline stocks dipped last week by 101,000 mt to 1.17 million mt, while fuel oil inventories were off by 106,000 mt to 1.37 million mt. It is expected to report a record-setting third straight quarterly loss on Friday as the COVID-19 pandemic crushes demand globally for crude oil and fuel. “As energy companies struggle amid depressed oil prices, Chevron said its capital spending declined 48%, while its operating expenses were down 12%.

United States

The social media company on Thursday added fewer users than Wall Street had expected and said a rise in expenses would accelerate in the fourth quarter. less (Nasdaq: SBUX) fourth-quarter earnings and revenue took a hit due to the pandemic but the company still beat consensus. China s state support for companies that Trump pledged to confront meanwhile remains intact.Campaign 2020There are four days until the election. With the US election now four days away, the latest polls continue to show Democrat Joe Biden with a commanding lead.
“In September, the Fed highlighted three risks to growth: lack of fiscal support, a new wave of COVID infections, and a tightening of financial conditions.
Thursday’s Key Earnings Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) -1.3% AH seeing significantly lower cash flow.Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) +6.7% as ad sales bounced back sharply. Apple Inc.’s shares are down more than 4% in pre-market trading after the company surprised Wall Street with lower-than-expected iPhone sales and a slump in China revenue. Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) slipped nearly 3% amid a user decline and “a significant amount of COVID-related uncertainty,” though revenues were up more than 20% despite ad boycotts.
US stock futures are trading lower today, indicating a negative opening for Wall Street indices. That’s well shy of the 2% inflation target for the decade to come, suggesting that investors need more evidence of the Fed’s ability to put its words into action.

Europe

French President Emmanuel Maron said that the current surge is worse than the first one, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the EU should have acted earlier. Europe laments its new lockdowns, earnings from big tech companies disappoint investors and the ECB lays out its message. The ECB’s action can’t come soon enough for markets roiled by a resurgence of coronavirus cases and fresh lockdowns. President Emmanuel Macron, who has been widely criticized by Muslim leaders for comments interpreted as hostile, said France was being attacked for its values.
President Christine Lagarde also sent a clear message to Brussels, calling for an implementation of the EU s recovery fund without delay. Airport Region Berlin Brandenburg ECB’s MessageThe European Central Bank delivered the message markets were expecting at its meeting on Thursday: It stands ready to act in December. EU finance ministers hold video calls Tuesday and Wednesday, while the European Commission releases its quarterly economic forecast on Thursday.
The ECB will clearly need to act to return inflation to target, as it seems to have realised at the meeting yesterday. Next week may also bring a long-awaited accord over a post-Brexit trade deal. Inflation – which Lagarde says will likely remain negative until early 2021 – is forecast to hover around 0% in October.

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