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(Wallace Refiners) – Gold (0.42%) and silver (1.16%) are both trading higher at the start of the week leading into the EU open. Risk sentiment has been poor overnight as the Nikkei 225 closed 0.97% in the red with the ASX also down -0.78%. The Shanghai Composite rose 0.84% as most of the Chinese bourses outperformed. In the FX complex, USD/CAD outperformed rising 0.44% as most commodities currencies struggled.
In terms of news, the major highlight came from China. Their latest year on year GDP figure came in at 6.5% vs the analyst consensus estimate of 6.1%. The December industrial production reading was also positive and printed at 7.3% vs expectations of 6.9%.
In German, the CDU party appointed Armin Laschet as their new leader. He is the candidate that resembles outgoing Angela Merkel the most and seems to be one of the more market-friendly candidates.
In the UK, it was reported that British Chancellor Sunak is considering a plan to provide 6 million people with a £500 benefit payment. Importantly, the same report suggested that the chancellor is looking at raising taxes in March to start paying for his trigger happy stimulus approach.
Canadian media reported that incoming US President Joe Biden plans to put a stop to the Keystone XL pipeline permit on his first day in office. This is one of the reasons that the Canadian dollar could have underperformed overnight.
Looking ahead to the rest of the session highlights include Canadian foreign security purchases, comments from ECB’s Lagarde and BoE’s Bailey. The afternoon might be quiet as it is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in America.
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