OVERNIGHT MARKETS AND NEWS

March E-mini S&Ps (ESH16 -0.90%) are down -0.81% and European stocks are down -2.34% at a 1-week low as they track crude oil prices, which are down -3.58%. Crude oil prices extended their declines late yesterday after API data showed U.S. crude supplies expanded by +7.1 million bbl last week. A sell-off in copper prices has also hurt miners and commodity producers with Glencore Plc and BHP Billiton down at least 7%, while Freeport-McMoRan and Alcoa are both down over 2%. The Chinese yuan fell to a 1-1/2 week low against the dollar ahead of the G-20 meeting in Shanghai on Feb 26-27 where people with knowledge of the agenda said officials from the world’s biggest economies will discuss the recent turmoil in China’s markets and ways to bolster a safety net for the global financial system. Asian stocks settled mostly lower: Japan -0.85%, Hong Kong -1.15%, China +0.88%, Taiwan -0.62%, Australia -2.10%, Singapore -1.95%, South Korea -0.05%, India -1.37%.

The dollar index (DXY00 +0.42%) is up +0.42% at a 3-week high. EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is down -0.51% at a 3-wek low. USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is down-0.25%. GBP/USD is down -0.92% at a 6-3/4 year low on concern that Britons will vote to leave the EU in a June referendum.

Mar T-note prices (ZNH16 +0.30%) are up +13 ticks at a 1-week high as the slide in stock prices boosts the safe-haven demand of government debt. T-notes also found support on carryover from a plunge in the 10-year German bund yield to a 10-month low of 0.131%.

U.S. STOCK PREVIEW

Key U.S. news today includes: (1) weekly MBA mortgage applications (previous +8.2% with purchase sub-index -3.7% and refi sub-index +16.0%), (2) Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker’s speech on the topic of “Can Monetary Policy Affect Economic Growth” at the John Hopkins Carey Business School, (3) prelim-Feb Markit services PMI (expected +0.3 to 53.5, Jan -1.1 to 53.2), (4) Jan new home sales (expected -4.4% to 520,000, Dec +10.8% to 544,000), (5) the Treasury’s sale of $13 billion of 2-year floating-rate notes and $34 billion of 5-year T-notes, (6) Dallas Fed President Rob Kaplan’s speech to the Harvard Clubs of Dallas and Fort Worth about current economic conditions and monetary policy, and (7) St. Louis Fed President James Bullard’s speech to Money Marketeers in New York.

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