Forex news for North American trading on December 11, 2018:
- UK Conservatives might have sent the 48 letters needed to trigger no-confidence vote on May
- US November PPI +2.5% y/y vs +2.5% expected
- Former Canadian diplomat detained in China after Huawei arrest - report
- Private oil stocks survey shows larger than expected draw in headline crude oil inventories
- RBNZ's Orr: The New Zealand dollar is remarkably well behaved
- Oil: EIA leaves 2019 US crude output estimate unchanged at 12.06 mbpd
- France left-wing groups file no-confidence vote in parliament
- Merkel tells parliamentary group there will be no further Brexit negotiations
- Italy's Di Maio: Next 24-48 hours crucial for budget
Markets:
- AUD leads, EUR lags
- S&P 500 down 1 points to 2637
- WTI crude up 96-cents to $51.96
- Gold down $1.60 to $1242
- US 10-year yields up 2 bps to 2.88%
Cable was higher as North American traders arrived but persistent talk and mixed reports of a leadership challenge to Theresa May in the day ahead sparked a round of selling from 1.2600 down to 1.2485 and a fresh 20-month low.
EUR/USD fell alongside cable as the US dollar caught a broad bid. The dollar gains came on an early positive tone in equities after Trump tweeted about US-China progress. After climbing to 1.1400 in Europe, the euro slide down to 1.1306 but bids at the figure cushioned the fall before a small bounce to 1.1318.
USD/JPY was bid once again, albeit modestly. A tick higher in Treasury yields underpinned a climb to 113.40 in the third day of higher highs.
Canadian oil differentials continued to narrow with WCS now just $10 cheaper that WTI but it did little for the languishing loonie as finished virtually changed on the day after bouncing around in a 1.3379 to 1.3424 range.
The kiwi tried a run to the upside and hit 0.6912 as risk sentiment briefly turned positive but it was sucked back down to flat on the day at 0.6874 as stock markets fell.
