Market Update – 8th March 2018 – Markets Rattled By Trump Economic Adviser Cohn’s Departure

So some key things happened yesterday. 1. Quarterly GDP was released by the ABS and showed a seasonally adjusted number of 0.4% for the final quarter of 2017, which for the calendar year came in at a seasonally adjusted 2.4% annual GDP growth. While the figure can’t quite be called a shocker it was the third quarter in a row of declining GDP growth and probably therefore explains much of the reasoning behind the RBAs decision earlier in the week to hold interest rates at 1.5%. The AUD is mostly stable despite the weaker GDP numbers.

In the U.S it appears the Trump administration is hell bent on tariffs and that resulted in Gary Cohn – the chief Economic Advisor to Donald Trump – quitting yesterday in frustration and presumably to distance himself from the administration if indeed things turn sour for the U.S economy in the coming months. Trump’s White House has been a revolving door of advisers and press secretaries and this is certainly no surprise, but the fact that Cohn quit certainly rattled markets and suggests nothing will stop Trump from instigating a trade war.

Ahead today is local trade balance figures at 11.30am.

AUD EXCHANGE RATES:

AUD/USD – 0.7819

AUD/GBP – 0.5624

AUD/EUR – 0.6300

AUD/NZD – 1.0733

AUD/JPY – 82.932

USD/BTC – $9,826

COMMODITIES/EQUITIES: 

All Ords (XAO) – 6,005

Gold – A$1695/oz

Silver –  A$21.10/oz

WTI – US$61.26/barrel

DATA RELEASES TODAY:

AUD – Trade Balance at 11.30am

EUR – Minimum Bid Rate (Interest Rates) at 11.45pm