From Marc to Market:
Overview: The US budget agreement passed a House committee vote by 7-6 and the bill is scheduled to be voted on by the entire House today before the Senate take it up with the idea of passing it Monday. The procedural step plus the weakness of China and Japanese data and soft CPI figures from Europe has lifted the greenback against all the major currencies. The euro and Australian dollar have been sold to new lows, while the dollar holds ever so slightly below JPY140. Despite a stronger-than-expected Q1 GDP (4.0% vs. 3.5%), the Turkish lira leads emerging market currencies lower. The weakness of the euro and escalating hostilities in Kosovo is weighing on the central European currencies. The Philippine peso and Mexican peso have edged higher and stand out among the emerging market currencies today.
The weaker growth impulses send Asia Pacific stocks lows and snapped a three-day advance in MSCI regional index. Europe's Stoxx 600 is off for the third consecutive session and the sixth in the past seven. US equity futures are trading with a slightly heavier bias. European benchmark 10-year yields are off 8-9 bp with some soft inflation reports in hand. The 10-year US Treasury yield is around four basis points lower to 3.65%. It peaked at the end of last week near 3.86%. Gold posted a potential key reversal to the upside, recovering from almost $1930 to $1963.50. It is stalling today after nearing $1965.50, as it is pulled between falling rates and a stronger dollar. July WTI fell 4.4% yesterday to almost $69 a barrel. The selling pressure was not satiated, and it is trading below $68.50 now. OPEC is meeting in a few days and the sharp fall in prices may encourage a few to enact more voluntary cuts.....
....MUCH MORE
