The Hon Scott Morrison aka ScoMo delivers the 2018 Budget this evening and I have to admit I find this time of year reasonably exciting. Why? Well to borrow the immortal words of Forrest Gump the Annual Budget Papers are just “like a box of chocolates…you never know what you’re gonna get.” And that’s precisely what to expect tonight.
In anticipation of to tonight’s Budget Papers the Aussie dollar has fallen marginally against the Greenback and Pound but has pushed tentatively closer to 0.6300 vs. the Euro. Stocks in the U.S and Europe pushed higher while oil and gold continued to make gains. Data released yesterday locally showed NAB Business Confidence improved, while ANZ Jobs Ads data showed a further contraction in the number of ads listed on websites and newspapers across Australia. Having recently been hiring it’s clear that there are simply not enough jobs going around for the candidates currently in the market, which suggests quite a bit of slack in the economy.
Ahead this morning is retail sales figures followed by Chinese Trade Balance numbers around lunch time. U.S Fed Chairman Powell also speaks tonight around 5.15pm AEST and despite only being new on the job does have a tendency to move markets with his comments.
AUD EXCHANGE RATES:
AUD/USD – 0.7513
AUD/GBP – 0.5539
AUD/EUR – 0.6300
AUD/NZD – 1.0705
AUD/JPY – 81.971
USD/BTC – $9,258
OTHER MARKETS:
All Ords (XAO) – 6,175
Gold – A$1748/oz
Silver – A$21.94/oz
WTI – US$70.05/barrel
DATA RELEASES TODAY:
AUD – Retail Sales m/m at 11.30am
CNY – Trade Balance Figures around lunchtime
USD – Fed Chair Powell Speaks at 5.15pm
AUD – Annual Budget Release at 7.30pm
Sign up for a Compass account today and access some of the most competitive rates in the business and arguably the best service.
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Patrick Downes
Senior Corporate FX Dealer
Phone Patrick – 0431 278 632
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