The Euro rose higher on the back of perceptions of the Federal Reserve may not be as aggressive on their rate hike cycle as previously thought. Tuesday brought a soft read on US PPI that followed last week’s CPI missing estimates.
Overnight though, robust US retail sales reflected the strength of the US consumer despite jumbo rate hikes this year from the Fed. The data showed sales increased 1.3% month-on-month in October rather than 1.0% anticipated and 0.0% prior.
In the North American session, we heard from Fed Board members Mary Daly, John Williams and Chris Waller and they all kept to the hawkish script. Wall Street was lesser in the aftermath as fears returned of a Fed that is prepared to slow down the economy further to rein in inflation.
The price action in Treasuries saw 1- and 2-year bonds increase by a couple of basis points, but the remaining curve saw yields drop.
The benchmark 10-year note nudged down to 3.67%, a 6-week low. As a result, the US 2s 10s yield curve spread continued to invert, touching -0.67 bps.
Crude oil is lower again on demand concerns with China Covid-19 related restrictions being persistent. The WTI futures contract is below US$ 84.50 bbl while the Brent contract is under US$ 92 bbl.