With the French election now finally in the rearview mirror, this week's focus is on global inflation releases, with the spotlight falling on the US and China, as well as retail sales in the US. We also have BoE and RBNZ rates meetings. In other data we note industrial production in the Eurozone, UK and Norway along with US retail sales and Fed speakers.
Key developed market events
The global "risk on" melt-up continues.
After a modestly hawkish Yellen warned that every meeting is live, and refused to take March off the table, sending the dollar and yield higher and the S&P to fresh record highs, world stocks rose hitting a 21-month high on Wednesday with the dollar rising for the 11th straight day, the longest positive streak since July 2015.
Submitted by Eugen von Bohm-Bawerk via Bawerk.net,
A new world order is coming of age and the transition is painful to accept for a Western middle class with a deep-seated sense of entitlement.
It has been more of the same overnight, as global stocks piggybacked on the strong US close and rose despite the lack of good (or bad) macro news, propelled higher by the two usual suspects: a higher USDJPY and a even higher oil, if mostly early on in the trading session.
Yes, the oil squeeze higher continues, and as the charts below courtesy of Andy Critchlow show, Brent is now 82% higher in the past 82 days...
... while crude has had its strongest rally since 2010.
In another quiet overnight session, the biggest - and unexpected - macro news was the surprise monetary easing by Singapore which as previously reported moved to a 2008 crisis policy response when it adopted a "zero currency appreciation" stance as a result of its trade-based economy grinding to a halt.