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COLOMBIA: Colcap Trades Down As Tax Reform In The U.S. Weighs

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Colcap, the main index of the Colombian Stock Exchange, traded down 0.42% at 1,440.31 points Tuesday, weighed by the perception that the tax reform in the United States would lure investors to the country, with a detrimental effect on emerging markets, according to Erika Baquero, an analyst at Alianza Valores.

Avianca shares ended stable after the company announced that it signed a code-share agreement with Air China. Grupo Energ?a Bogot? (GEB) (-0.72%) reported that the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia, authorized an External Loan Agreement with a group of banks of up to US$ 749 million.

The shares of Canacol (+0.40%), and ?xito (+0.24%) are rising, while Cemex (-2.55%), ISA (-1.43%), Sura (-1.21%), and Ecopetrol (-0.56%) are falling.

The locally traded U.S. dollar closed at 2,996.50 Colombian pesos, marking a 0.15% rise, due to the expectation of a rate hike by the United States Federal Reserve Bank in 2018. Daniel Escobar, an analyst at Alianza Valores, noted that the market expects three rate adjustments in 2018, from two, which would have favored the greenback rebound.

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Bitcoin Breaks Through $12, 000 Mark for the First Time

In early Asian trading, Bitcoin's value rose above the $12, 000 mark, as the digital currency continued its rally. The digital currency last traded at $12, 123.98, according to CoinDesk.

The digital currency started the year at less than $1, 000 per token, but in recent months has shown a stellar upward movement: it reached $5, 000 in October and rose above $11, 000 for the first time less than two months later, CoinDesk data showed.

The most recent surge brings the cryptocurrency's total market value to around $203 billion.

The digital token's rally comes amid widespread criticism from Wall Street analysts and financial institution personalities.

Despite this, many elements of the financial world have welcomed the new crypto asset class. Major exchanges such as CME and CBOE have legitimized the cryptocurrency's investment credentials by announcing their plans to introduce future contracts to their respective exchanges in the near future.

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ARGENTINA: Vehicle Production Rises 3.1% On Month In November

Vehicle production in Argentina hit 45,228 units in November, 3.1% more than in October, but 3.7% less than in the same month last year, said the country's Association of Automotive Manufacturers (ADEFA).

The sector exported 19,122 vehicles - 9.7% less than in the previous month, and 11.2% below the volume recorded in the same month of 2016.

In wholesale sales, the sector sold 78,631 units, a volume that was 5.7% over the previous month's record, and 26% higher compared to November last year.

Year-to-date, the automotive sector produced 438,878 units, 1.4% more than in the same period of the previous year.

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Australian Dollar Slides to Two-Week Low after Trade Data Miss Estimates

The Australian dollar declined to a two-week low on Thursday after published economic data showed its trade surplus contracted in October, clocking in below estimates as exports weakened.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the country's balance of goods and services was a surplus of A$105 million for October. The figure was down from A$1.6 billion in September and missed estimates of A$1.4 billion by economists

Exports declined 3 percent in October compared to the prior month's A$903 million, missing estimates of 3 percent growth. Outbound shipments of non-rural goods declined 5 percent while rural goods slid 2 percent.

Imports increased 2 percent month on month, defying expectations that inbound shipments would be flat.

The Aussie declined 0.3 percent versus the greenback to its lowest since November at $0.7544 after the data publication.

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RBNZ’s Spencer Warns About Bitcoin’s Bubble Qualities, Instability

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Reserve Bank of New Zealand Acting Governor Grant Spencer warned that Bitcoin's remarkable rally looks like a speculative bubble and its instability makes it unuseful in the future.

The New Zealand central banker said that the bitcoin is looking 'remarkably like a bubble forming'. He said that there have been bubbles over the centuries, but bitcoin looks like a classic case. He also warned that with such a bubble, there is no telling how far it will go before it drops.

So far this year, the cryptocurrency has surged more than 1,500 percent and around 85 percent in just the last two weeks, as people clamber to acquire the digital currency on hopes that it will be a widely-accepted and legitimate alternative to gold or traditional cash. Trading in bitcoin futures starts this week.

Spencer said that in his view, bitcoin is highly similar to gold, which also has to be mined, has a fixed quality and the price is very volatile.

RBNZ is currently doing research on the demand for the kiwi or the New Zealand dollar and whether it would be possible at some point in the future to replace the currency with a digital alternative, however, Spencer said that bitcoin should not a basis for this scenario. He said that given bitcoin's lack of stability, it would not be useful.

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New Zealand Govt Appoints Adrian Orr As Central Bank Governor

The New Zealand government appointed Adrian Orr as Reserve Bank Governor for a five year term.

"Following the Reserve Bank Board's unanimous recommendation to me, I have appointed Adrian Orr for a five-year term at the completion of Acting Governor Grant Spencer's term," Finance Minister Grant Robertson, said.

The appointment will take effect on March 27, 2018.

Robertson said Orr has the technical and leadership qualities required to be Governor and CEO of the Reserve Bank.

He is currently the Chief Executive Officer of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, a position he has held since 2007.

Orr is set to oversee the bank through the government's planned review of the Reserve Bank Act.

Orr has the standing and ability to manage this process of change as Governor of the Bank, Robertson said.

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Australia Q3 House Prices Ease 0.2% On Quarter

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Residential property prices in Australia fell 0.2 percent on quarter in the third quarter of 2017, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday.

That missed forecasts for a gain of 0.5 percent following the 1.9 percent jump in the previous three months.

On a yearly basis, house prices were up 8.3 percent - again missing forecasts for 8.8 percent and down from 10.2 percent in the three months prior. The capital city residential property price indexes fell in Sydney (-1.4 percent), Perth (-1.0 percent), Darwin (-2.6 percent) and Canberra (-0.2 percent) and rose in Melbourne (+1.1 percent), Brisbane (+0.7 percent), Adelaide (+0.7 percent) and Hobart (+3.4 percent).

Annually, residential property prices rose in Hobart (+13.8 percent), Melbourne (+13.2 percent), Sydney (+9.4 percent), Canberra (+6.9 percent), Adelaide (+4.8 percent) and Brisbane (+3.5 percent) and fell in Darwin (-6.3 percent) and Perth (-2.4 percent).

"The fall in Sydney property prices this quarter was consistent with market indicators," said ABS Chief Economist Bruce Hockman.

The total value of residential dwellings in Australia was A$6.779 trillion at the end of the September quarter, rising A$14.843 billion over the quarter.

The mean price of residential dwellings fell A$1,200 to A$681,100 and the number of residential dwellings rose by 40,200 to 9,954,100 in Q3.

Also on Tuesday, the latest survey from National Australia Bank showed that consumer confidence in Australia slowed in November with an index score of +6.

That's down from the upwardly revised +9 in October (originally +8).

Business conditions also slowed in November with index coming in at a score of +12, down sharply from +21 in the previous month.

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Canadian Dollar Little Changed Ahead of Fed Meeting, Poloz Speech

The Canadian dollar was nearly flat versus the US currency as investors turned their focus on this week's Federal Reserve interest rate hike decision as well as a speech by Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz.

The loonie fell 1.3 percent the previous week after the central bank delivered a more dovish tone than investors had anticipated. The Bank of Canada kept its benchmark interest rate at one percent.

The Canadian central bank is concerned about a number of uncertainties that could impact the nation's economy, which includes renegotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement.

NAFTA talks convene in Washington next week for a limited round of negotiations aimed at demonstrating progress toward closing easier chapters.

The U.S. central bank is widely expected to hike interest rates at its two-day policy meeting, and is seen possibly tightening rates two or three times next year.

The Canadian dollar traded in a narrow range of C$1.2832 to C$1.2868. On Friday, it reached its weakest level in a week, at C$1.2880.

According to U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data and Reuters calculations, speculators reduced bullish wagers on the Canadian currency.

Canadian government bond prices were lower across much of a flatter yield curve, with the two-year off by 1.5 Canadian cents to yield 1.512 percent and the 10-year dropping 1 Canadian cent to yield 1.862 percent.

The gap between Canada's two-year yield and its U.S. equivalent widened by 1.5 basis points to a spread of -31.1 basis points.

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Bitcoin Scales New Record High in Rally Towards $20, 000

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The digital currency Bitcoin reached another record peak on Tuesday, two days after the debut of the bitcoin futures on a U.S. exchange and before the launch of another futures contract next week, raising investors' hope that the Bitcoin is nearing the $20, 000 mark.

On Sunday, Cboe Global Markets introduced bitcoin futures, allowing investors to experience trading with the cryptocurrency through a large, regulated exchange. On December 17, CME Group is expected to launch its own futures contract.

The biggest cryptocurrency in the world was priced at $17, 310 on Bitstamp exchange, up 5.1 percent on the day. Early on Tuesday, bitcoin rose to a record high of $17, 428.42, recording an almost 20-fold rise in its value for the year as it attracted millions of new investors.

However, as bitcoin hit a new record, digital currency exchange operators Coinbase and Bitfinex reported issues with service via their website, causing problems for traders looking to lock in their profits on the latest gains in the value of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Meanwhile, the one-month bitcoin futures on Cboe Futures Exchange traded slightly tepid, with prices generally stead and volumes around a third of those seen on Monday. Bitcoin futures due on January traded at $18, 450 with around 1,416 contracts traded.

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South Korea Money Supply Growth Accelerates Slightly

South Korea's money supply growth accelerated marginally in October after remaining stable in the previous month, preliminary figures from Bank of Korea showed Wednesday.

M2, a broad measure of money supply climbed 4.7 percent year-over-year in October, just above the 4.6 percent rise in the prior month.

On a monthly basis, M2 money supply rose 0.8 percent in October, following a 0.2 percent increase in September.

The annual growth in liquidity moderated to 6.0 percent in October from 6.7 percent a month ago.

Liquidity of financial institutions grew at a stable rate of 5.9 percent yearly in October.

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China Retail Sales Rise 10.2% In November

Retail sales in China were up 10.2 percent on year in November, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday.

That missed forecasts for 10.3 percent but was still up from 10.0 percent in October.

The bureau also noted that industrial production advanced an annual 6.1 percent - matching forecasts and down from 6.2 percent in the previous month.

Fixed asset investment was up 7.2 percent, again in line with expectations and slowing from 7.3 percent a month earlier.

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Australian Dollar at 1-Month Peak as Jobless Rate Near 5-Year Lows

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The Australian dollar rose to a one-month peak on Thursday after the jobless rate remained steady for the third straight month in November while number of full time roles increased.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the jobless rate stood at 5.4 percent for the third month in a row and is also at its lowest level since 2013. The participation rate jumped to 65.5 percent, highs not seen since early 2011.

Australian employment grew the most in over two years and is extending a run of 14 consecutive month of gains.

According to figures from the ABS, 61,600 net new jobs were added in November, compared with forecasts for an 18,000 rise and above an upwardly revised 7,800 gain in October. The number of full-time jobs rose in November with 41,000 jobs added. October's figures were revised upwards to 31,000 full-time roles from 24,300.

Following the publication of the data, the aussie increased by 0.4 percent against the greenback to $0.7668, a one-month peak. The data will be welcomed by the Reserve Bank of Australia which is hoping the strong run in employment would ultimately lead to higher wages growth and inflation.

However, it appears that companies are not so keen on paying workers more, which left wage growth near record lows. Wage growth is moving at 2.0 percent, only slightly above inflation of 1.8 percent. This weighs on the spending power of Australian consumers who are already facing a mountain of debt.

Latest figures showed that Australia's economy picked up at an annual 2.8 percent pace in the third quarter.

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Indonesia Exports Rise More Than Expected In November

Indonesia's exports and imports grew more than expected in November, data from statistics bureau revealed Friday.

Exports rose 13.18 percent year-over-year in November, faster than the 12.63 percent growth economists had forecast.

Imports surged 19.62 percent in November from a year ago, well above the expected spike of 13.0 percent.

As result, the trade surplus shrank notably to around $130 million in November from $833 million in the corresponding month of 2016.

The expected surplus was $844 million. In October, the surplus totaled $1.0 billion.

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CHILE: Guillier And Pi?era Face Second Round For Presidency On Sunday

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The ruling candidate Alejandro Guillier and the conservative former President Sebasti?n Pi?era will face each other on Sunday for the presidency of Chile in a hard-fought ballot, in which the continuity of the center-left reforms are challenged by Pi?era's promises for greater economic growth.

Pi?era achieved 36.6% of the votes in the first round, while the Senator Guillier won 22.7% of the vote. Although both candidates would maintain the free market model, Pi?era intends to reverse the tax and social reforms promoted by the current president Michelle Bachelet. If elected, Pi?era promises to double the growth of the economy.

Meanwhile, Guillier seeks to shield Bachelet's economic and social reforms and has promised to focus on deepening free education access, ending the monopoly of the Pension Fund Administrators (AFP) and promote a new Constitution for the South American country.

The main pollers in the country indicate a too close to call scenario. Cadem's survey shows Pi?era with 40% and Guillier with 38.6%, while Criteria gives 47% for Pi?era and 45% for Guillier.


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ARGENTINA: China Reduces Tariffs On Food Imports

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The Chinese government has cut import tariffs for food products as of December 1, a decision that favors some of Argentina's exports, according to the South American country.

The regulations establish lower temporary tariffs aimed at reducing prices and stimulating spending of the final consumer on 187 products that China has to import.

According to the Argentinean government, there was a tariff reduction on 32 items that favor the country - for example, frozen shrimp (from 5% to 2%). That is one of the main export products of the Argentinean fishing sector to China. In the dairy sector, the tariff has been reduced for all cheeses, except for fresh ones.

In food and beverages, there will be a reduction in the tariffs for uncooked pasta, without egg (mainly comprising dried pasta) homogenized whiskey, said the Ministry of Agribusiness of Argentina.

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Japan All Industry Activity Rebounds As Expected In October

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Japan's all industry activity increased as expected in October, after falling in the previous month, data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed Wednesday. The all industry activity index rose 0.3 percent month-over-month in October, reversing a 0.5 percent decrease in September. Industrial production advanced 0.5 percent over the month and tertiary activity gained by 0.3 percent. At the same time, construction output dropped 0.3 percent. On a yearly basis, all industry activity growth accelerated to 2.0 percent in October from 1.0 percent in the prior month.

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U.S. Regulators Halt Trading of Crypto Company Shares

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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has suspended trading in shares of Crypto Company, whose stock value has surged more than 2, 000 percent this month due to the bitcoin mania, stating it was concerned over the possibility of market manipulation.

The California-based company said it is building a cryptocurrency trading and advisory business, is one of some of the previously obscure stocks that have drawn the attention of regulators for volatile price movements, as investors track down equities that might gain from the hype around digital currencies.

In a statement issued by SEC on Tuesday, the regulator said it was worries regarding the accuracy and the sufficiency of the information in the markets regarding payments for promotion of the firm and plans by company insiders to auction shares.

The U.S. regulator added that questions have also been raised about potentially manipulative deals in the firm's stock in November 2017.

The company said it would be releasing a statement in reaction to the SEC suspension but declined to issue more comments. The regulator said its suspension would be in place until January 3.

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BoJ Keeps Monetary Policy Unchanged

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The Bank of Japan kept its monetary stimulus unchanged as widely expected on Thursday.

Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and his board members decided by an 8-1 majority vote to hold its target of raising the amount of outstanding JGB holdings at an annual pace of about JPY 80 trillion.

The bank will purchase government bonds so that the yield of 10-year JGBs will remain at around zero percent.

The board also decided to maintain the -0.1 percent interest rate on current accounts that financial institutions maintain at the bank.

With regard to the outlook, Japan's economy is likely to continue its moderate expansion.

The year-on-year rate of change in the CPI is likely to continue on an uptrend and increase toward 2 percent.

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Oil Prices Steady on Lower U.S. Crude Inventories

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Oil prices were on a steady footing after posting solid gains late in the prior session on the back of a decline in U.S. crude stockpiles.

However, another increase in U.S. oil production, which is near to surpassing the 10 million barrels per day level, is limiting crude prices as it erodes efforts led by OPEC and other producers to tighten the market by withholding production this year and through 2018.

U.S. WTI crude futures stood at $58.05 per barrel, falling 3 cents from their last close. The international benchmark for oil prices, Brent crude futures, traded at $64.58 per barrel, falling by 8 cents. Both crude benchmarks edged up around 1 percent during the prior session.

According to traders, the drawdown in U.S. crude oil inventories were providing supporting the market. U.S. crude stockpiles declined by 6.5 million barrels in the week to December 15, according to the Energy Information Administration's report on Wednesday. Total crude stocks declined to 436 million barrels, its lowest level since October 2015.

The rebalancing of supply and demand is a result of OPEC and other participating countries' voluntary production cuts.

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PETROBRAS: Company To Invest US$ 60 Billion In Pre-salt By 2022

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Brazilian state-owned oil company Petrobras is directing most of the investments in the area of oil production in the pre-salt layer, and by 2022 around US$ 60 billion in will be destined to the area, said Pedro Parente, Petrobras' chairman, during a press conference.

According to him, Brazil today is the leader in oil exploration in Latin America and the ninth largest producer in the world. The goal is to reach the seventh place in the next few years.

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