- Wall Street closed higher yesterday as the FOMC delivered no negative surprises. After Tuesday’s sell-off, Nasdaq rebounded (+1.4%), followed by S&P 500 (+1.08%), DJIA (+0.9%), and Russell 2000 (+1.57%). U.S. futures indicate continued gains in today’s session.
- Jerome Powell reaffirmed the Fed’s stance on monetary policy, emphasizing that there is no rush to cut rates (“the cost of waiting is low”), the labor market is balanced (low layoffs, few new hires), and future decisions will be data-driven. The median dot plot signals two rate cuts in 2025.
- On Trump’s tariffs, Powell stated that their impact remains uncertain due to high market noise and unpredictability, with inflation effects expected to be temporary.
- Asia-Pacific markets mostly followed Wall Street’s gains, but Chinese stocks saw heavy profit-taking, especially in the tech sector. The HSCEI (-1.95%), Shanghai SE Index (-0.4%), and Nikkei 225 (-0.25%) declined, while South Korea’s Kospi (+0.3%) and Australia’s ASX 200 (+1.15%) gained.
- Trump expressed openness to meeting Xi Jinping in June. New Zealand exited recession with Q4 2024 GDP growth of 0.7% q/q (forecast: 0.4%). Australia’s employment change missed expectations (-52.8K vs. forecast 30.8K), increasing expectations for monetary easing by the RBA.
- On Forex markets, the U.S. dollar strengthened (USD Index: +0.08%). The NZD (-0.6%) and AUD (-0.4%) were the biggest losers. EUR/USD fell slightly below 1.09 (-0.15%) post-Powell’s speech, while JPY strengthened (USD/JPY: -0.1%).
- Cryptocurrency markets saw losses, with Bitcoin (-0.46%), Ethereum (-1.8%), Ripple (-3.1%), Chainlink (-1.1%), Dogecoin (-0.7%), and Solana (-0.1%) declining.
- Oil futures rebounded, with Brent crude (+0.54%) and WTI (+0.46%) rising, while natural gas (NATGAS) also gained slightly (+0.15%).
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