BinaryOptionStrategy– Asia Tumbles, US Data Shows Job Growth

SamTrader1

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Equities

A heavy wave of selling hit Asia, as Tuesday’s Wall Street selloff crossed the Pacific. The Nikkei tanked, dropping 2.4% to 10492. The Hang Seng slumped 1.5%, while the ASX 200 slipped a more comfortable .5%. China’s Shanghai Composite was almost unaffected, closing down .2%.
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Nikkei Hit By Heavy Selling

European markets extended their losses, as the FTSE lost 21 points to close at 5915, and the DAX dropped .6%.

The Dow ended marginally higher, rising 9 points, surrendering early gains. The Nasdaq rose .4%, while the S&P ticked up .2%.

Apple revealed the next version of its Ipad, sending shares up .8%. The New York Times rallied more than 5%, and Metlife fell 5.7%.

Treasuries and Commodities


Bonds sold off, as strong economic data, coupled with surging oil prices, reduced the appeal of fixed-income investments. Any indication of a raise in interest rates puts pressure on bond prices. 10-year notes dropped 24/32 to yield 3.47%, and 30-year notes tumbled 1 14/32 to yield 4.56%.

Oil rose once again, climbing 2.77 to 102.40, it’s highest close since September 2008. Natural gas dropped 1.6%, and gasoline gained 1.4%.

Gold climbed to another record high close, up $5 to 1436.20. Silver rose .5% to 34.575, and copper slipped .4% to 4.474.

The cotton rally continued, as prices jumped 4.4% to 204.45. Cotton prices have nearly tripled since their July low of 73.50.

Currencies

It was another tough day for the US dollar, as the greenback slipped against all major currencies. The Euro successfully broke past the 1.3850 barrier, to close at 1.3868, up .7%. The Pound and Australian dollar both gained .4%, and the Swiss Franc climbed .5% to .9234. The Yen and Canadian dollar gained marginally.

The ECB will issue its rate decision and hold a press conference tomorrow. Any further guidance regarding inflation and interest rates is likely to have a significant impact on the currency market.

Economic Outlook

The ADP Employment Change report showed a gain of 217K jobs, far more than the 178K expected. This bodes well for Friday’s more-authoritative non-farm payrolls report.

Weekly mortgage applications dropped 6.5%, but were probably influenced by the Presidents Day holiday, minimizing the report’s significance.

Tomorrow’s economic reports will include Retail Sales data, ISM non-manufacturing index, weekly jobless claims, and Money Supply.

Earnings are due from Heinz, Kroger and Novell.

-Bradley Welcher
 
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