ZAR: Gold Weakness Pressures Rand to Lowest Level in a Week
Feb-28 16:26
New multi-week lows in spot gold prices – which have hit their lowest levels since Feb 4 – has weighed on the South African rand towards the latter stages of the European session, with ZAR-denominated gold prices showing over 3% lower compared to this month’s earlier highs. The currency is among the weakest across the EMEA FX space today, though fresh tariff jitters hit broader EM sentiment following Trump’s comments on social media yesterday.
- Today’s 0.6% advance for USDZAR puts the pair back above the 20- and 50-day EMAs, narrowing the gap initial resistance at 18.6543, the Feb 10 high. A break here could signal scope for a stronger reversal higher towards key short-term resistance at 19.2296, the Jan 13 high, clearance of which would confirm a continuation of the medium-term uptrend.
- Looking ahead to next week, manufacturing PMI figures for January and 4Q GDP and current account data are all due. The SARB meet next on Mar 20.
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US: Lutnick Signals Support For Across The Board Tariffs
Jan-29 16:19
US President Donald Trump's Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick is delivering testimony to the Senate Commerce Committee for his nomination hearing. LIVESTREAM
- Notably, Lutnick’s nomination was introduced in person by Vice President JD Vance, a former member of the Commerce panel, who described Lutnick as a ‘product and sales guy’.
- Asked if 2022 CHIPS and Science Act investments should be preserved: “I think they are an excellent downpayment on our ability to bring semiconductor manufacturing back to America,” but notes the investments should be reviewed.
- Ranking Democrat Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) notes Lutnick’s comments appear at odds with recent comments from Trump, likely referring to Trump’s speech at this week’s House GOP retreat where he panned the CHIPS Act: “…this ridiculous program that Biden has given everybody billions of dollars.”
- Lutnick later notes that he will “do enormous work to get [CHIPS] money out appropriately and correctly,” and downplays the impact of Trump’s federal spending freeze on CHIPS funding.
- Asked how he would approach AI regulation, Lutnick says: “It has to be an American-driven leadership in AI,” noting that he would support regulation similar to that of “cyber technology and cyber rules.”
- He says he prefers “across the board tariffs,” noting that targeted tariffs could lead to a tit-for-tat tariff war on individual products: “My way of thinking is county-by-country, macro… We are treated horribly by the global trading environment… We need to be treated with respect to create reciprocity, fairness, and respect.”
FED: US TSY 17W AUCTION: NON-COMP BIDS $584 MLN FROM $64.000 BLN TOTAL
Jan-29 16:15
- US TSY 17W AUCTION: NON-COMP BIDS $584 MLN FROM $64.000 BLN TOTAL
MACKLEM: TARIFF SCENARIO SHOWS WHAT SOME WOULD CALL RECESSION
Jan-29 16:08
- MACKLEM: TARIFF SCENARIO SHOWS WHAT SOME WOULD CALL RECESSION
