Asian Stocks Swung Between Gains And Losses Overnight

AM Analysis – “Asian stocks swung between gains and losses overnight” – Lee Mumford
Asian stocks swung between gains and losses overnight following Chinese date which showed a rise in China’s imports to the most in five months, indicating that domestic demand will support economic growth. Inbound shipments advanced 8.3% from a year earlier.

European futures are indicating a higher open, ahead of key US jobless data at 13:30. Expectations are for a creation of 197,000 jobs with the unemployment rate flat at 7%. A number of analysts remain bullish with Goldman Sachs upgrading the estimate to 200,000 whilst Deutsche Bank gives a confident 250,000.

Gold was performing well this morning, climbing ahead of US jobs data as investors weighed up the outlook for physical demand against speculation the Federal Reserve may cut stimulus again.

PM Analysis – “Payrolls in the US rise but much less than expected by analysts” – Lee Mumford
Global markets continue to hold onto gains, despite a correction after the Non-farm payroll figures. Payrolls in the US rose just 74,000 in December, much less than the 196,000 estimated by many analysts. US bonds jumped after the news with the 10-year benchmark note yield dipping below 2.9%. December was a weak month for job growth in the United States which was somewhat affected by bad weather. The figure surprised many with most investors believing the figure would come out strong due to pre and post-Christmas job creation. However, this was not the case. The unemployment rate fell 0.3 percentage points to 6.7 percent.

Gold gained the most in a week following the payroll data as investors believed the worse than expected figure will increase speculation the Federal Reserve will slow the pace of tapering. Over in Europe, bulls used the initial negative reaction to buy into the dip. However, gains couldn’t be maintained on Wall Street with the Dow Jones now trading in negative territory.


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