Forex news from the European morning session - 9 January 2020
Headlines:
- Iranian commander: Missile strikes' aim was not to kill US troops, but to damage military machines
- UK PM spokesman: Johnson and von der Leyen had positive talks
- BOE's Carney: Rebound projected in BOE forecast for this year is not assured
- China's Liu He said to lead 10-member delegation to Washington - report
- EU's Barnier: Time frame for new relationship deal with UK is hugely challenging
- China says vice premier Liu He will go to Washington to sign Phase One trade deal
- Germany November trade balance €18.3 billion vs €21.3 billion expected
- Germany November industrial production +1.1% vs +0.8% m/m expected
- Ukrainian airliner had technical problem prior to crash - initial Iran investigation report
Markets:
- EUR leads, GBP lags on the day
- European equities higher; E-minis up 0.3%
- US 10-year yields down 1.0 bps to 1.863%
- Gold down 0.3% to $1,551.22
- WTI up 0.7% to $60.05
- Bitcoin down 1.4% to $7,896
Markets were more steady in general during European morning trade as we see US-Iran geopolitical tensions continue to ebb. European equities are holding firm so far while US futures are pointing to a higher open later in the trading day.
China also helped to inject more calm after confirming that vice premier Liu He will be leading a delegation to Washington on 13-15 January to sign off on the Phase One trade deal.
There was barely any reaction in markets as the announcement was very much expected to be coming following recent reports over the past few days.
But as US-Iran tensions eased, the yen and gold eased a little with USD/JPY rising to 109.49 from 109.30 and gold slipping to its 200-hour moving average near the $1,540 level.
Meanwhile, the pound also saw decent movement as cable rose to a high of 1.3124 towards the end of the Asia Pacific session only to run into offers and quickly fall to 1.3065 in early European morning trade.
BOE governor Mark Carney then offered some dovish comments and that brought the pound lower with cable slipping past support around 1.3050-54 to hit a low of 1.3013.
The dollar held more firm in general as it traded narrowly for the most part against the other major currencies. Although the kiwi is also notably weaker amid mild AUD/NZD buying.
Looking ahead, markets are trying to settle into a bit of a calmer period after the chaos from geopolitical tensions in the Middle East since last Friday. Attention will slowly shift back towards the Fed and US data with the non-farm payrolls report due tomorrow.
