Share

Dollar up on US rate hike talk, but Asian markets edgy

Hong Kong - The dollar pushed higher in Asia on Monday as investors increased their bets on a US interest rate hike by the end of the year, but stock traders were more reticent ahead of the corporate earnings season.

With the US economy showing increasing signs of recovery, experts say a Federal Reserve lift in December is all but certain, helping the greenback clock up healthy gains in recent weeks.

"A number of positives continue to accrue for the US dollar, foremost of which is the relative health of growth around 2% and the very strong signals being pushed by the Fed that it will be raising rates in December," Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at FX and CFD provider AxiTrader, said in a note.

Speeches by several Fed officials later in the week will be pored over for more clues about the bank's plans for rates, particularly the pace of any further rises next year.

In early Asian trade the dollar was flirting with 104 yen, while the already-struggling pound was sitting below $1.22. The euro suffered fresh losses after Friday's sell-off fuelled by speculation the European Central Bank will unveil fresh stimulus measures in December.

The US unit was also up around 0.1% against most high-yielding, riskier, currencies, including the Australian dollar, South Korean won and Malaysian ringgit.

Equity markets swung in and out of positive territory as companies prepare to report earnings, with Japanese gaming giant Nintendo and South Korea's under-pressure Samsung Electronics due this week.

Tokyo's Nikkei was flat by lunch, while Hong Kong added 0.2% and Sydney shed 0.7%. Shanghai added 0.5% and Seoul was up 0.3%. Singapore gained 0.2% while Manila sank one%.

Dealers are also keeping an eye on the upcoming US presidential election.

While market favourite Hillary Clinton is well ahead in most opinion polls, Stephen Innes, a senior trader at OANDA, warning of an equity rout if they are wrong and her firebrand opponent Donald Trump wins on November 8.

On oil markets both main contracts dipped on remarks from Iraq's oil minister saying the country should be exempted from a planned OPEC output cut because it is in the middle of a war with Islamic State militants.

However, they did earn a measure of support from Saudi Arabia's oil minister saying the current cycle of falling prices is close to an end as market fundamentals improve.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.93
+0.0%
Rand - Pound
23.90
+0.0%
Rand - Euro
20.40
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.33
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.0%
Platinum
908.05
+1.2%
Palladium
1,014.94
+1.3%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders