NOTABLE MOVES
As of Wed, Jan 16, 08:00 Singapore Time zone UTC+8
USDJPY, +0.47%, $108.68
EURUSD, -0.57%, $1.1411
GBPUSD, +0.05%, $1.2866
USDCAD, -0.19%, $1.3261
AUDUSD, +0.06%, $0.7200
NZDUSD, -0.12%, $0.6815
S&P500, +1.07%, 2,610.30.
Nasdaq, +1.71%, 7,023.83
Nikkei Futures, +1.76%, 20,542.0
CURRENCY MARKET WRAP
- The Producer Price Index for final demand declined -0.2% (consensus -0.1%) while the index for final demand, less food and energy, declined -0.1% (consensus +0.2%). The monthly changes left the index for final demand up 2.5% year-over-year, unchanged from November, and the index for final demand, less food and energy, up 2.7%, also unchanged from November. The key takeaway from this report is that producer price inflation is moderating, which will suggest in the market’s mind that consumer price inflation is going to as well.
- The bond market was quiet despite the gains in the stock market. The 2-yr yield and 10-yr yield were unchanged at 2.52% and 2.71%. The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.3% to 95.92. WTI crude rose 2.6% to $51.92/bbl.
- In Brexit, MPs voted by 432 votes to 202 to reject the deal – the heaviest defeat for a sitting government in history. A defeat has been broadly anticipated in markets since the agreement with the EU was closed in November 2018 and caused several members of the government to resign. The UK is still on course to leave on 29 March but the defeat throws the manner of that departure and the timing of it into further doubt. The probability of a no deal has diminished while the chances of a delay in Article 50, a second referendum or even, at the margin, no Brexit at all, have all increased. The consequence of those scenarios has encouraged Sterling to remain bid despite the PM suffering the worst parliamentary result in a century.
STOCK MARKET WRAP
- The S&P 500 gained 1.07% on Tuesday, as a shift to high-growth stocks helped the market rally past several earnings disappointments. The ability of the market to rally on bad news fed into a belief that the bad news was priced in already during the December rout, which in turn fuelled hope that bargain-hunting efforts will keep the 2019 rally going.
- Weaker-than-expected (but not weak) earnings reports from JPMorgan Chase (JPM 101.68, +0.74, +0.7%) and Wells Fargo (WFC 47.67, -0.75, -1.6%) provided an early justification to sell the banks. JPMorgan missed both top and bottom line estimates, but net income increased 67%, earnings per share increased 85%, and net revenue growth increased 4%. Wells Fargo for its part missed top line estimates but beat earnings estimates. Dow component UnitedHealth (UNH 256.87, +8.81, +3.6%) outperformed after it beat earnings estimates and helped drive the leadership of the health care sector. The preference for high-growth tech stocks kept the broader market afloat despite the earnings disappointments. The outperformance of the growth stocks on Tuesday could be rationalized in part as an effort to invest in companies with stronger growth prospects amid a slowing growth environment. Netflix (NFLX 354.64, +21.70, +6.5%), for instance, remained in growth mode with reports indicating it will raise its U.S. subscription prices to finance its original content and heavy debt load.
BLOCKCHAIN & CRYPTOCURRENCY NEWS
Canadian Platform to Become the Major Global Crypto Exchange by Expanding to 100 Countries
Canadian-based CoinField plans to make crypto trading more accessible and cheaper for investors irrespective of where they live so they can take advantage of when crypto prices go green. The exchange intends to become one of the largest trading platforms for cryptocurrencies. It is already available in 101 countries and the team plans to expand the service to more regions in 2019, including the United States. The trading platform says it offers real-time order books, trade history, charting tools, advanced limit and stop orders, and a user-friendly order process so that a user “can trade like a pro from day one.” Its engine is capable of conducting “75,000 trades per second, or up to 1.5 million API calls per second”. CoinField uses a “one of a kind secret vault that’s been built from scratch to store sensitive information on the system.” It currently offers deposit and withdrawal options for six different popular fiat currencies and 60 trading pairs for crypto. The platform has recently added four new digital assets.
Canadian-based CoinField plans to make crypto trading more accessible and cheaper for investors irrespective of where they live so they can take advantage of when crypto prices go green. The exchange intends to become one of the largest trading platforms for cryptocurrencies. It is already available in 101 countries and the team plans to expand the service to more regions in 2019, including the United States. The trading platform says it offers real-time order books, trade history, charting tools, advanced limit and stop orders, and a user-friendly order process so that a user “can trade like a pro from day one.” Its engine is capable of conducting “75,000 trades per second, or up to 1.5 million API calls per second”. CoinField uses a “one of a kind secret vault that’s been built from scratch to store sensitive information on the system.” It currently offers deposit and withdrawal options for six different popular fiat currencies and 60 trading pairs for crypto. The platform has recently added four new digital assets.
European Blockchain Startup Launches Trading in Tokenized Securities
Belarus-based blockchain startup Currency.com has launched a trading platform for tokenized securities. The platform will initially host over 150 tokenized securities, tracking the underlying market price of financial instruments such as equity and commodities, it said, while over 10,000 similar offerings could be available in the future. The service lets investors buy a token that would reflect the performance of, say, an Apple share on the Nasdaq stock exchange, at the “same economic costs and benefits of an Apple share.” The mobile trading apps of the platform, both iOS and Android, are expected to be available as beta versions from February. The platform would allow investors to directly trade and invest in financial instruments using the cryptocurrencies bitcoin or ethereum, without first converting to fiat.
Belarus-based blockchain startup Currency.com has launched a trading platform for tokenized securities. The platform will initially host over 150 tokenized securities, tracking the underlying market price of financial instruments such as equity and commodities, it said, while over 10,000 similar offerings could be available in the future. The service lets investors buy a token that would reflect the performance of, say, an Apple share on the Nasdaq stock exchange, at the “same economic costs and benefits of an Apple share.” The mobile trading apps of the platform, both iOS and Android, are expected to be available as beta versions from February. The platform would allow investors to directly trade and invest in financial instruments using the cryptocurrencies bitcoin or ethereum, without first converting to fiat.
Huobi Exchange Hires Compliance Chief From Global Bank State Street
Huobi, the third largest cryptocurrency exchange by monthly trading volume, has hired a senior professional from a major U.S.-based global bank. As regulators in different countries are paying ever-closer attention at crypto, Huobi hopes to benefit from Sun’s expertise in working with government bodies around the world. CryptoRecruit has noticed a huge increase in the number of people from traditional banks who are extremely receptive when we approach them for potential job opportunities in crypto. Developers have been moving over from tech firms since last year but to see bankers making the move is reassuring as to where the future of this industry is headed.
Huobi, the third largest cryptocurrency exchange by monthly trading volume, has hired a senior professional from a major U.S.-based global bank. As regulators in different countries are paying ever-closer attention at crypto, Huobi hopes to benefit from Sun’s expertise in working with government bodies around the world. CryptoRecruit has noticed a huge increase in the number of people from traditional banks who are extremely receptive when we approach them for potential job opportunities in crypto. Developers have been moving over from tech firms since last year but to see bankers making the move is reassuring as to where the future of this industry is headed.