Stocks Climb on Chinese President Xi Speech

US Equities

The US stock futures gained after Chinese President Xi promised to open China’s markets to foreign business. His comments came in Boao Forum, which is a forum committed to promoting regional economic integration and bringing Asian countries closer to their development goals. Traders grasped the openness and positivity of the Chinese leader, which eased the worries of a trade war between China and United States. Xi confirmed that China will lower import tariffs on many products including cars.

USD

The greenback continued suffering against major currencies, the dollar index reached almost two weeks low. The US dollar has been weakening since Friday, after the job data showed the lowest jobs creation in six months. The dollar strengthened versus the Japanese yen after Chinese President Xi Comment’s improved risk appetite.

EUR

Euro rose to a week high against the United States dollar, after European Central Bank president, Mario Draghi, confirmed that the slide in the stock market didn’t affect the euro zone financial conditions. The EURUSD traders will be eyeing the area of 1.2340-50, which might show some resistance.

GBP

The British Pound traded at two weeks high yesterday on a weaker dollar and upbeat housing data. The currency is still finding support from the expectations of an interest rate hike by the Bank of England in May. Pound traders might be cautious in trading today, ahead of manufacturing data tomorrow.

JPY

The Japanese yen slipped against the dollar in the Asian session as traders jumped into risk-on trading after the comments from the Chinese President. The USDJPY is lingering around the 50 day Exponential moving average, which has been providing selling pressure for the past trading days.

Gold

Gold prices pared some of their gains and traded lower, as trade war tensions eased. Gold is trading in a tighter range now between, $1320 and $1357. Trade war talks were leading the moves in gold prices for the past weeks, any development in this concern will decide on the next move for the precious metal.

Oil

Oil prices rose for the second consecutive day, on the rising geopolitical tension and relief in the trade war issue between China and United States. The US imposed new sanctions against Russia on Friday. The West Texas Intermediate crude futures traded at the highest levels in April. The American Petroleum Institute will publish storage data today, while the official inventory data is due tomorrow.

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Disclaimer
The prices and news mentioned in this outlook are absolutely no guarantee of future market performance and do not represent the view of ICM Capital Limited. Financial markets can move in either direction causing profits to be made or complete losses to be incurred by the trader. Each trader must decide for themselves what their risk appetite is and ensure that correct risk management procedures are in place before placing any trades.