Asian shares slipped lower early Thursday, with energy shares leading declines. Wall Street showed reserved returns Wednesday with limited trading due to the U.S. Veterans Day holiday.
Global oil prices added to the gloom with U.S. crude falling nearly 3 percent on Wednesday. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) will issue an official inventory data Thursday, a day later than usual due to the holiday but will probably show a seventh weekly build-up in crude inventories.
Euro and Sterling Up
The euro stayed above $1.07 while the greenback lifted on Tuesday following a brief period of consolidation as a result of strong U.S. jobs numbers last week which analysts believe could point to an almost certain rise in Federal Reserve interest rates next month.
Britain’s Pound Sterling, which has also moved ahead after sharp falls last week, inched higher after wage data and jobs numbers gave some semblance of a positive economic outlook.
The Australian and New Zealand were the biggest movers in a subdued Asian session on currency markets, both up almost half a percent against the dollar.
The RBNZ’s latest financial stability report released this week warned of risks from a 27 percent surge in house prices this year in its capital city of Auckland and markets interpreted these numbers as an indication that the bank might have to keep a tighter rein on policy in response.
According to Sue Trinh, a strategist with RBC Capital Markets, "The kiwi jumped on these headlines as the market interpreted them as less dovish."