Morning wrap (15.04.2024)

Indices from Asia and the Pacific are mostly recording gains. The Chinese FTSE China A50 index is up by 3.10% and HSCEI by 1.55%. However, declines are observed in the Vietnam index, VN30, which is down by 0.80%, and in Singapore - SG20cash - down by 20%.

Futures contracts for European indices indicate a higher opening for the cash session on the Old Continent. Contracts for indices in Germany and the UK are up by even 0.45-0.55%.

In the forex market, in the first part of the day, movements are particularly noticeable on the Australian Dollar (AUD) and the New Zealand Dollar (NZD), which are gaining around 0.1-0.2%. On the other side, the Japanese JPY is losing between 0.5-0.9%. USDJPY is up by 0.50% today to a record level of 153.800.

On Sunday, Iran carried out the retaliatory missile attack that had been announced last week in response to an Israeli attack on an Iranian consulate in Damascus, which killed seven IRGC members, including two generals responsible for directing operations in Syria and Lebanon, as well as six other people.

This was the largest drone attack in recent history. Moreover, Iran's retaliation was the first direct attack by this country on Israel in over 50 years, simultaneously increasing the risk of further escalation of the conflict, which involves an increasing number of allies.

Tehran's operation was highly organized and apparently designed to minimize casualties while maximizing the display of military capabilities.

In response to rising tensions in the Middle East today, we observe increases in gold (+0.50% to 2350 USD). Interestingly, oil is losing about 0.25-0.40% to 85 USD. Just after the first news of the attack, we saw Brent oil prices rise above 91 dollars, but this move was quickly erased.

President Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a phone call on Saturday that the United States would not support any Israeli counterattack on Iran, a high-ranking White House official told Axios.

Biden and his advisors fear that an Israeli response to the Iranian attack on Israel would lead to a regional war with catastrophic consequences.

Tehran warned that it would strike again with greater force if Israel or the USA retaliated for the Iranian attack on Israel.

In the cryptocurrency market, we observe a slight rebound. However, over the weekend, we experienced another downward wave, during which Bitcoin tested the lower limit of the channel at around 60000 USD. Today, Bitcoin is down about 1.00% to 65000 USD.