Markets Overview

There will be plenty of interest in Australia’s June labourforce report at 9.30am SGT, especially in light of where theAUD is trading. Expectations are for the Australian economyto add around 15k jobs following a 42k expansion in May, thejobless rate to come in at an annualized 5.6% from 5.5%.

    A little later, we receive Japan’s all industry index for May andGermany’s PPI report for June. The European Commissionwill also today release its flash consumer confidence readingfor July. In the UK, the June retail sales report will be themain focus, with the market seemingly expecting some sortof rebound from the decline seen in May.

    In the US, the Philadelphia Fed’s manufacturing survey forJuly will provide a check on Monday’s New York manufacturingsurvey. The Conference Board’s leading index for June isalso released today, along with the usual weekly joblessclaims and Bloomberg consumer comfort reports. Earningsseason will continue with reports from the likes of Bank ofNew York Mellon, Visa and Microsoft. Meanwhile in politics,news out of Washington DC is expected to keep markets ontheir toes, as Republicans continue to grapple with healthcaredifficulties.

    For the day ahead in Asia (Thur 20 Jul), key data to watch willbe Taiwan’s Jun exports orders at 4pm, which are expectedto be at a relatively healthy 8.3%y/y gain vs. 9.1% in May, asa marker to determine the longevity of current expansion inexports across Asia.

    Central bank action today includes Bank of Japan and BankIndonesia later in the afternoon, which is expected to seeits policy rate on hold at 4.75%. This will be followed by theclosely watched ECB’s policy decision in the evening.