Market News

The safe haven Japanese Yen edged closer to a 7-year trough versus the U.S. Dollar as speculation continues to swirl that the government is going to soon call for a snap election.

The yen slipped and Japanese shares gained Wednesday amid speculation that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will call an unscheduled election. Australia’s dollar fell and Brent crude oil extended its decline below $80 a barrel.

The Japanese Yen eased away from the recently struck 7-year trough versus the U.S. Dollar in the wake of comments made by a government official which cooled investor speculation that the Japanese Prime Minister would be holding a snap election next month.

Alibaba's sales for Singles' Day, China's equivalent of Cyber Monday, passed the $9 billion mark late Tuesday, topping last year's record of around $5.9 billion.

The U.S. Dollar edged higher versus the Japanese Yen, striking a fresh 7-year peak, after Shinzo Abe, the Japanese Prime Minister was rumored to be considering a delay to an upcoming tax increase.

Asian equity markets were mostly higher on Tuesday following another record close on Wall Street, but falling commodity prices weighed down Australian markets.

The U.S. Dollar began the trading week in Asia lower as investors are still reeling from Friday’s unexpectedly weak labor report which gave FX traders a reason to pull back on the greenback after several weeks of gains.

Asian bourses were mixed on Monday, with China markets outperforming the region after a new launch date was announced for an anticipated cross-border trading link with Shanghai.

Singapore’s central bank returned as much as S$12 billion ($9.3 billion) that it took from 19 lenders last year as a penalty for trying to rig benchmark interest rates.

The euro strengthened while stocks in the region and U.S. equity-index futures declined after the European Central Bank kept interest rates unchanged. Gold rebounded and the ruble weakened to a new record.

U.S. equity-index futures dropped with Asian stocks, as Japanese shares dragged the regional index lower and gold rose from a four-year low. The euro climbed prior to the European Central Bank’s decision on monetary policy.

The U.S. Dollar struck a 7-year peak versus the Japanese Yen during the European trading session today following a Republican-led victory for seats in the U.S. Congress raised investors hopes that Washington’s political gridlock could finally be overcome.

The market took Saudi Arabia’s oil price cut this week as another sign that the kingdom is willing to use pricing as a lever to preserve its market share rather than cut production in what is now an oversupplied market.

Emerging market currencies fell on Tuesday, coming under pressure by the strength of the U.S. Dollar and in the wake of mounting evidence that growth in China is slowing.

Gold prices are continuing to drop this week. However, even with gold prices dropping to near 4-year lows, buyers in China , the world's leading market aren't tempted to buy, suggesting prices have even further to fall.