Headlines:
- Central banks in the spotlight this week
- OPEC brushes aside omicron risks, upbeat on 2022 oil demand
- UK PM Johnson confirms a first patient has died from omicron variant
- SNB total sight deposits w.e. 10 December CHF 722.7 bn vs CHF 720.3 bn prior
- Germany November wholesale price index +1.3% vs +1.6% m/m prior
Markets:
- USD leads, AUD lags on the day
- European equities higher; S&P 500 futures up 0.2%
- US 10-year yields down 1.9 bps to 1.47%
- Gold up 0.4% to $1,788.94
- WTI down 0.9% to $71.04
- Bitcoin up 1.7% to $48,830
The market is reflecting mixed tones to start the week as the focus shifts towards key central bank meetings in the days ahead.
The lack of any meaningful data releases and absence of significant headlines didn't help with the mood either. That is leaving traders and investors to fend for themselves for the time being.
The dollar kept a slight advance, holding firmer across the board. EUR/USD eased from 1.1300 to 1.1260 before halving that drop. Meanwhile, USD/JPY pushed up from 113.40 to 113.70 only to give back most of that advance.
The pound was also under pressure early on as the UK labels an "emergency" on omicron. Cable fell from 1.3250 to 1.3220 levels only to rebound back to 1.3260 now but still a little lower on the day.
Elsewhere, commodity currencies are slightly pressured and keeping near the lows for the day. AUD/USD is down about 0.5% to 0.7130 levels while USD/CAD is up 0.3% to 1.2760.
That despite risk tones being somewhat more mixed as equities are holding on to mild gains while bond yields are more subdued on the session. In the commodities space, oil turned around a gain of close to $73 to be down 1% now just below $71.
It's tough to get a sense of things as the market is likely to stay more on edge, if anything else, to start the week. That considering all eyes are on the Fed, ECB, and BOE coming later in the week.
