New York, US (BBN) - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Thursday, April 13:
1. TRUMP REMARKS TROUNCE DOLLAR
The dollar steadied on Thursday after weakening broadly in the previous session when US President Donald Trump said the currency “is getting too strong” and he would prefer the Federal Reserve keep interest rates low.
USD/JPY was at 108.97 after falling to a five-month trough of 108.71 overnight.
Sterling rose, with GBP/USD up 0.18 per cent at 1.2561, the most since March 28.
The US dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was at 100.13 after touching a two-week low of 99.94 overnight.
The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield slid to a five-month low of 2.22 per cent.
2. GLOBAL STOCKS BROADLY LOWER
The weaker dollar contributed to a fall in global equities on Thursday. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended down 0.68 per cent pressured lower by the stronger yen.
In Europe, the benchmark Euro Stoxx 50 was down 0.48 per cent, Germany's DAX fell 0.29 per cent, France’s CAC 40 shed 0.45 per cent and London’s FTSE 100 lost 0.45 per cent.
US stock futures pointed to lower open on Wall Street, with the blue-chip Dow futures down 0.19 per cent, S&P 500 futures losing 0.26 per cent and the Nasdaq 100 futures off by 0.18 per cent.
3. US Q1 EARNINGS IN FOCUS
Wall Street's first-quarter earnings season gets underway in earnest, with major US banks JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Citigroup (NYSE:C) and Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) all reporting later Thursday.
The financial sector is projected to post a 15.4 per cent profit gain, second only to energy among S&P sectors, with revenue rising 7.5 per cent.
For the broader market, earnings are forecast to grow 10.1 per cent from a year ago, the best since 2014, while sales growth is expected to jump by 7.5 per cent, the best since 2011, according to Thomson Reuter’s data
A strong earnings season would help justify pricey stock valuations, with the S&P 500 rallying this month to its most expensive since 2004 on a forward price-to-earnings basis.
4. US DATA ON TAP
The Labor Department will publish initial jobless claims figures at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT) and the consensus forecast is that the report will show jobless claims rose to 245,000 last week from 234,000 in the prior week.
At the same time, the Commerce Department will publish data on March producer prices, which is expected to show that the PPI was flat last month but rose by 2.4 per cent from a year earlier.
The University of Michigan is to release the preliminary reading of its consumer sentiment index for April at 10.00 ET.
Market analysts are expecting the index to have ticked down to 96.5 from 96.9 in March.
5. CHINA TRADE DATA SHOWS BRIGHTER EXPORT OUTLOOK
Official data on Thursday showed that China's exports rose at the quickest rate in slightly more than two years in March, increasing 16.4 per cent from a year earlier, pointing to improving global demand.
Imports remained strong at 20.3 per cent, reinforcing a picture of robust domestic demand.
China posted a trade surplus of $23.93 billion last month, the customs office reported after logging its first deficit in three years in February.
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