Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day
Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day
(Bloomberg) --
Good morning. U.K. leadership favorite Boris Johnson chose to talk about Brexit instead of his love life, under-fire U.S. rate-setter Jerome Powell is due at an event in New York, Iran appeared to close the door on talks with Washington, and Bitcoin’s rally is outshining even that of gold. Here’s what’s moving markets.
Boris Talks Tough
Boris Johnson, still dodging questions on his personal life, told the BBC he believed the British Parliament would now support a no-deal Brexit, even as senior figures in his Conservative Party warned they had the numbers to stop one. The prime ministerial favorite said his Brexit strategy is to use the threat of no deal to persuade the European Union to remove the controversial Irish border backstop from the Withdrawal Agreement. But the pound didn’t really flinch. Three years since the vote, here’s what to expect in Season 4 of Brexit.
Closed Forever
Iran appeared to publicly sever ties with the U.S., saying new sanctions against its supreme leader and foreign minister mean the diplomatic path with Washington is closed "forever," according to reports from the semi-official Iranian Students News Agency. Trump’s government is destroying international mechanisms for maintaining global peace, the foreign ministry was also quoted as saying. Despite the added tensions, oil slipped overnight after rallying almost 8% in three days.
Powell In Spotlight
Embattled Fed Chair Jerome Powell speaks in New York after European markets close on the challenges facing the U.S. economy, just a day after President Donald Trump accused his central bank of behaving like a “stubborn child” in refusing to lower interest rates. “Blew it!,” Trump wrote on Twitter on Monday, although one of Powell’s colleagues later sounded a note of caution about rate cuts. And while the president thinks the Fed is overly hawkish, FX traders might not agree, with the dollar index on course for its worst quarter in five.
Stealing The Show
Asian stocks were mostly lower overnight as investors weighed up current geopolitical risks that have sent gold to a near six-year high. But while the yellow metal’s move has been impressive, it’s Bitcoin that’s stealing the show, surging in recent sessions and dragging some exposed stocks higher as analysts point to renewed mainstream interest in cryptocurrencies, demonstrated most prominently by Facebook Inc.’s Libra, coupled with fewer concerns about fraud. That said, a comparison between Bitcoin and gold itself might be a stretch.
Coming Up...
British transport firm FirstGroup Plc will attempt to avoid a boardroom coup when it holds a shareholder meeting to vote on a proposal from activist investor Coast Capital to oust a number of directors, including its chairman and CEO. Elsewhere, it’s another light earnings slate, although battered U.K. retailer Carpetright Plc is due to publish results. Scheduled data includes U.S. home sales and consumer confidence, and there’s also a rate decision from Hungary.
What We’ve Been Reading
This is what’s caught our eye over the past 24 hours.
- Banker’s wife part of organized crime group, Azerbaijan says.
- Brokers sent themselves contacts, then quit.
- Blue blood worth $60,000 a gallon.
- No, canned water won’t save the planet.
- Uniqlo owner considers paying star employees $280,000 after 3 years.
- The polygamist who allegedly scammed the U.S. out of a half-billion dollars.
- Trump muses privately about ending postwar Japan defense pact.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Phil Serafino at pserafino@bloomberg.net
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