Monday Morning Briefing: Asia Tepid; Oil Extends Losses
Here’s your Monday morning briefing
It was tepid start to the week for Asian markets, on the back of muted cues from Wall Street on Friday. Markets in Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong are shut today, while the Chinese markets resumed trade after a week-long holiday.
U.S. Jobs Report Below Estimates
U.S. jobs data came in below estimates on Friday but ‘strong enough’ for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in December. The total non-farm payrolls for September came in at 1,56,000 compared to the revised figure of 1,67,000 in August, according to data from the Bureau of Labour Statistics.
The unemployment rate stayed at the 5 percent mark, with 7.9 million people in the U.S. remaining unemployed. The odds for a December rate hike from the U.S. Federal Reserve inched higher to 64 percent, according to future rates tracked by Bloomberg.
U.S. markets snapped its three-week gaining streak. The S&P 500 shed 0.7 percent for the week as investors awaited more cues from the Fed as well as the Presidential debate.
Oil Remains Below $50/Barrel
Oil extended losses below $50 per barrel after U.S. drillers added rigs for the sixth straight week to the highest level since February, and Russia cast doubts over any deal between members of the OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) over output cuts.
West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery traded lower by one percent at $49.34 per barrel. Oil rallied almost ten percent since the OPEC members agreed to cut output to stabilize prices late in September.
Mexican Peso Jumps As Debate Gets Underway
The Mexican peso traded with gains as the second presidential debate between Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton got underway at the Washington University in St. Louis.
The dollar index fell for the second day in a row while the yen remained little changed.
Positive Start?
The SGX Nifty futures were trading with gains of 0.5 percent at 8,764 as of 7:10 a.m. indicating a positive start for Indian equities. Investors will be awaiting data from the Index of Industrial Production later this evening.
