Daily Market Outlook from ACFX 09/17/2013

[Atlas CapitalFx]

Daily Market Outlook from ACFX 09/17/2013


Important Financial Indicators of the day

GBP - 08:30 (GMT) - CPI y/y - Forecast 2.7% - Previous 2.8%
EUR - 09:00 (GMT) - German ZEW Economic Sentiment - Forecast 45.3 - Previous 42.0
CAD - 12:30 (GMT) - Manufacturing Sales m/m - Forecast 0.6% - Previous -0.5%
USD - 12:30 (GMT) - Core CPI m/m - Forecast 0.2% - Previous 0.2%


Currencies

◾EUR/USD The dollar traded 0.4 percent from its lowest level in almost three weeks against the euro as investors await a decision on U.S. monetary policy from Federal Reserve officials beginning a two-day meeting today.
The dollar fetched $1.3330 per euro as of 1:27 p.m. in Tokyo, little changed from yesterday, when it touched $1.3386, the weakest since Aug. 28. The greenback added 0.2 percent to 99.25 yen. The euro rose 0.2 percent to 132.34 yen.

◾GBP/USD The pound rose to an eight-month high versus the dollar as Lawrence Summers withdrew from the race to lead the Federal Reserve, ending bets he would undo the central bank’s policies aimed at holding down borrowing costs.

◾The pound climbed 0.4 percent to $1.5935 at 4:16 p.m. London time after rising to $1.5963, the highest since Jan. 18. Sterling was little changed at 83.83 pence per euro after appreciating to 83.57 pence on Sept. 13, also the strongest level since Jan. 18.

◾USD/CAD The Canadian dollar increased to its strongest level in a month amid speculation the U.S. Federal
Reserve won’t put an early end to its expansionary monetary policy, boosting riskier assets.

◾Canada’s currency appreciated 0.3 percent to C$1.0324 per U.S. dollar at 5 p.m. in New York after earlier touching C$1.0283, the strongest level since Aug. 12. One Canadian dollar purchases 96.88 U.S. cents.



Commodities

◾Oil West Texas Intermediate crude slid for a third day on speculation that the threat of an imminent U.S.-led military strike against Syria is receding and as Libya’s oil production recovers.

◾WTI for October delivery declined as much as 87 cents to $105.72 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $105.86 at 11:32 a.m. Singapore time. The contract dropped 1.5 percent to $106.59 yesterday, the close lowest since Aug. 26. The volume of all futures traded was about 3 percent less than the 100-day average.


◾Brent for November settlement slid as much as 62 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $109.45 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures
Europe exchange. The European benchmark crude was at a premium of $4.14 to WTI for the same month. The spread narrowed for the first time in four days yesterday to $3.88.

◾Gold swung between gains and losses as investors weighed the outlook for U.S. stimulus with the Federal Reserve to commence its policy meeting today.

◾Bullion for immediate delivery advanced 0.1 percent to $1,314.46 an ounce at 10:39 a.m. in Singapore after losing and gaining at least 0.3 percent. Prices fell to $1,303.43 yesterday, the lowest since Aug. 8. Gold for December delivery declined 0.3 percent to $1,314.10 an ounce on the Comex.




Equities

◾Asian stocks fell, with the benchmark regional index declining from a four-month high, as the Federal Reserve begins a two-day policy meeting at which it is forecast to reduce the pace of its U.S. bond buying.

◾The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.3 percent to 138.32 as of 11:38 a.m. in Hong Kong as nine of the 10 industry groups
on the gauge declined. The Federal Open Market Committee meets today and tomorrow to consider whether to taper its $85 billion-a-month in bond buying.

◾U.S stocks rose, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to a five-week high and within 1 percent of a record, after Lawrence Summers withdrew his bid to be Federal Reserve chairman and tensions over dealing with Syria’s chemical weapons eased.

◾The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 0.6 percent to 1,697.60 at 4 p.m. in New York, after earlier rising as much as 1 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 118.72 points, or 0.8 percent, to 15,494.78. About 5.7 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, 4.5 percent below the three-month average.