Here's our summary of key events overnight that affect New Zealand, with news dairy prices are holding.
Today's dairy auction was a bit of a non-event as far as price signals are concerned with the overall index unchanged from the prior auction three weeks ago. WMP prices were marginally firmer, SMP prices were marginally weaker. Butter was down -3.2% while cheese was up +1.3%. At least today's auction brings to an end four consecutive drops. And volumes sold rose. The good news is that prices in NZ dollars are up +0.8%.
American job openings held near record highs in June amid a modest decline in hiring, pointing to further tightening in their labour market conditions, which economists hope will soon spur faster wage growth.
US consumer credit grew much more slowly in June than expected. It moved above US$3.9 tln for the first time, but the undershoot to market expectations was -US$5 bln, and that was -$15 bln lower growth than in the previous period.
In Canada, one of Fonterra's rivals - Saputo, the company that acquired Murray Goulburn in Australia - has reported lower earnings amid rising costs and lower prices in its ingredients business. Fonterra will report its final 2017/18 result in late September.
In Germany, their exports remained flat in June from May, held back by trade war actions, but they were +7.8% higher than the same month a year ago. Their industrial production declined more-than-expected in June from May. Meanwhile, the country's current account surplus grew +17% in June compared with the same month a year ago.
China's foreign currency reserves rose in July. Analysts had expected a small slip so this is a stronger result than expected. Later today we will get China's July trade balance data.
In Japan, they are reporting a rise in incomes, a development that will cheer their central bank. Household incomes were up +4.4% in the year to June, the largest rise since mid 2015. However, they also reported that this did not have any impact in household spending.
In Australia, funding has been approved to establish new intrusive regulatory teams from ASIC that go into banks looking for conflict-of-interest breaches. These new teams would park themselves inside a bank and conduct star-chamber inquiries. Bank executives are likely to be significantly diverted from managing their business - but so far there has been no investor reaction reflected in bank share prices.
The UST 10yr yield is rising and is now at 2.97%. Their 2-10 curve is back up to +30 bps. The Chinese 10yr is at 3.50% (up +3 bps) while the New Zealand equivalent is now just over 2.77%, down another -3 bps.
Gold is up +US$1 in New York and now a just on US$1,209/oz and holding at its eighteen month low.
US oil prices are little changed today and now still just over US$69/bbl. The Brent benchmark is now just over US$73.50/bbl.
The Kiwi dollar is starting today unchanged at 67.3 USc. On the cross rates we are also little changed at 91 AUc, and at 58.1 euro cents. That puts the TWI-5 at 70.9 and its lowest in more than a month.
Bitcoin is now at US$7,089 and up +2.5% from this time yesterday. We track this rate daily in the interactive chart below.
This chart is animated here. For previous users, the animation process has been updated and works better now.
The easiest place to stay up with event risk today is by following our Economic Calendar here ».
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