Forex news from the European morning session - 11 October 2019
Headlines:
- Ireland's Varadkar: I anticipate the UK to make more detailed proposals
- Cable brushes aside earlier whipsaw to firmly break the 1.25 handle
- Pound whipsaws on Tusk comments on Brexit
- EU's Tusk: Johnson has promised to come forward with a solution that works for all
- Markets are feeling more optimistic than ever that a Brexit deal is coming
- BOJ's Kuroda says that central bank has various means to ease policy
- Iran says that two missiles were targeted at its oil tanker, causing the explosion
- Explosion reported in an Iranian tanker near Jeddah
Markets:
- GBP leads, JPY lags on the day
- European equities higher; E-minis up 0.9%
- US 10-year yields up 0.7 bps to 1.675%
- Gold up 0.1% to $1,495.56
- WTI up 1.6% to $54.40
- Bitcoin down 2.8% to $8,340
As we head into the final stretch of the week, trade and Brexit sentiment played their respective parts in making the session a lively one for the most part.
Early on, we had oil prices surging after an Iranian tanker was hit by missiles near the Saudi port city of Jeddah. Oil climbed from $53.85 to a high of $54.87 - also helped by more upbeat risk sentiment - before settling a little lower currently.
Equities were a notable mover during the session as stocks pushed higher throughout amid optimism of a partial trade deal being struck. The bond market didn't really play ball initially as yields fell in early trades before recovering somewhat as we hit European midday.
As a result, USD/JPY inched down to 107.90 before climbing back to post highs near 108.35 currently. Meanwhile, the aussie and kiwi remained upbeat with AUD/USD hitting 0.6800 as the dollar stayed weaker during the session.
All that said, the pound remains the key highlight once again as it looks to post its best two-day gain since June 2016. Cable is up by more than 1% well above 1.2500 as optimism surrounding a Brexit deal continues to flood through the market.
Price briefly touched a three-month high of 1.2589 after a nervous period as algos came into play on the release of headlines from EU's Tusk. Cable dropped from 1.2500 to 1.2409 before quickly bouncing back to the 1.2500 level and then resuming its upside move.
Looking ahead, it's all about trade talks as we look to wrap up the week but at the same time, Brexit headlines will be keenly eyed as well as the pound continues to surge forward on hopes of a deal being struck.
