Asia-Pacific stocks were mixed today as traders reflected on the latest news on Covid-19. In China, the Shanghai and A50 indexes rose by more than 2% while in Japan, the Nikkei rose by 0.75%. In Australia, the ASX dropped by 1.50%. Meanwhile, in the United States, futures tied to the Dow and Nasdaq rose by 0.50% and 0.33%. On Saturday, data from China logistics showed that China’s PMI dropped to 35.7. This was lower than the expected level of 45. It is also the lowest it has been ever. Today, data from Markit showed that the PMI dropped to 40.3. Perhaps, market participants are hoping that markets have become oversold after last week’s price action.
Traders are also preparing for a busy political week in the United States. Tomorrow, most democrats will go to the ballot to vote for their preferred presidential candidate. Most investors are hoping that a moderate candidate like Joe Biden will receive most of the votes. This is after he won the first primary in South Carolina on Saturday. His victory ended Bernie Sanders’ winning streak. A win by Bernie would present the market with significant challenges because of his extreme positions. For example, he advocates raising the minimum wage to $15 and to give employees 20% stake in companies they work for.
We will receive January PMI data today from Markit. In Germany, economists polled by Reuters expect the manufacturing PMI to remain unchanged at 47.8. In the United Kingdom, the PMI is expected to drop slightly from 51.9 to 51.8. In the United States, the PMI is expected to have declined from 50.9 to 50.4. The reason for these declines in PMI is that global supply chains have been affected because of the covid-19 disease. According to media reports, many factories in China, South Korea, and Japan were operating below capacity in February.
EUR/USD
The EUR/USD pair rose by 30 basis points in the Asian session. The pair reached a high of 1.1073, which is the highest it has been since February 6. The price is along the 61.8% Fibonacci Retracement level on the four-hour chart. It is also above the 7-day and 28-day exponential moving averages. The RSI has moved from a low of 25 to the current level of 70. The pair may continue rising as traders continue to hope for a rate cut by the Fed.
XBR/USD
The XBR/USD pair rose by more than 2.55% during the Asian session as traders hoped for a rebound in global growth. The pair reached an intraday high of 51.35. The price is slightly above the short and medium-term moving averages. The pair has also formed a bullish engulfing pattern on the hourly chart. The RSI has moved from below 30 to the current level of 53. The price may continue moving higher ahead of the OPEC+ meeting later this week.
AUD/USD
The AUD/USD pair rebounded during the Asian session. The pair rose by 42 basis points to the Friday’s low of 0.6433. The pair formed a hammer pattern on the four-hour chart. The price also moved from the oversold level of 30 to the level of 40. The signal line of the MACD is below the neutral line. The pair may continue to rise as optimism returns to the market.
