- Global stock market indices are mixed, with non-tech U.S. indices mostly holding up while Asian markets fell lower during Monday’s trading session. Institutional players are seen as likely to remain selling U.S. Treasuries and the Japanese yen.
- Key U.S. non-farm payrolls jobs data came in Friday well ahead of expectations, with 379K new jobs compared to the 197K which had been expected by analyst consensus.
- In the Forex market, the Japanese yen is the weakest currency, while the Australian dollar looks to be the strongest today on current price action.
- Gold again hit a new 6-month low price on Friday in U.S. dollar terms. The precious metal is exhibiting sustained weakness.
- The USD/JPY currency pair has again advanced to make a new multi-month high, this time above 108.00, with odds in favor of further advances over the coming days.
- Bitcoin bulls have again failed to push the price above the key resistance level at $51,837 but price action has become more bullish. A sustained break above that resistance level could trigger a stronger advance.
- Global coronavirus deaths have fallen sharply over the past five weeks to reach a level 33% lower than the peak. New confirmed cases have fallen to their lowest level since October 2020.
- Total confirmed new coronavirus cases worldwide stand at over 117.4 million with an average case fatality rate of 2.22%.
- The fastest progression in terms of immunizing a population against the coronavirus has been in Israel, which has already administered a first shot of the Pfizer vaccine to 53% of its entire population and a second dose to 40% (which includes more than 88% of over-50s who have either received a shot or recovered from coronavirus). The U.A.E. ranks second, with 22% of its population fully vaccinated. For most of the world, a vaccine remains distant. Progress remains slow in the hard-hit European Union with not a single member state having yet fully vaccinated even 4% of its population. Denmark and Austria are beginning to explore ways to boost their vaccine provision outside E.U. structures.
- The rate of new coronavirus infections appears to now be increasing most quickly in Austria, Bosnia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iraq, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kuwait, Malta, Moldova, Mongolia, North Macedonia, Norway, Pakistan, Paraguay, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine, and Uruguay.
Forex Today: U.S. Treasuries, Yen, Asian Stocks Decline
Adam Lemon
Sentiment remains influenced by rising U.S. inflation expectations and long-term treasury yields.