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August 24th - This week, bond investors will be closely watching Federal Reserve Chairman Warshs speech in Jackson Hole. The market is seeking his response to persistent inflation and fiscal issues, and long-term Treasury bonds may face further sell-off risks. Warsh has rarely provided forward-looking policy guidance since taking office in May. His speech following the last monetary policy meeting triggered a massive sell-off in the bond market, highlighting the markets high sensitivity to his speech on Friday. Molly Brooks, U.S. interest rate strategist at TD Securities, said, "I think if he continues to not provide more information, the market will be disappointed, which could further exacerbate the recent sell-off in long-term Treasury bonds." Kathy Bostjancic, chief economist at National Mutual Insurance, said that factors continuing to weigh on the bond market remain, including fiscal concerns, inflation, and market uncertainty about the Feds response. Dhiraj Narula, interest rate strategist at HSBC, said this provides Warsh with an opportunity to reassure investors by clarifying his policy outlook. He said, "In our view, if Chairman Warsh can make some judgments about potential inflationary pressures, it could be enough to reduce the term premium associated with uncertainty."On August 24th, the UKs Office for Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that commercial shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz continued to decline over the past 48 hours, with shipping activity suppressed and the number of vessels passing through in both directions in single digits. The UKMTO report stated that no confirmed attacks or interference incidents were detected, but noted that Iranian threats and harassment activities persist, including drone overflights, targeted surveillance of merchant ships, and occasional VHF radio calls. These actions "continue to demonstrate Irans intention to maintain a presence along key shipping lanes and to continue to exert pressure on transit vessels." Meanwhile, the UKMTO stated that commercial traffic in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait has also "continued to decline" following the Houthi blockade of Saudi Arabia on July 20th.The UK Maritime Trade Operations Office (UKMTO) stated that shipping traffic in both the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait has declined.On August 24, Canadian Ambassador to the United States Mark Wiseman stated that trade negotiations between Canada and the US broke down on the evening of August 22 due to multiple issues, including discrepancies between the written text of a potential agreement and what Canada believed to be the consensus reached between the two sides. In an interview on August 23, Wiseman said that no single issue led to the failure of the negotiations. The breakdown in negotiations subsequently triggered a new round of tariffs and could further escalate the Canada-US trade dispute.Iraqi Prime Ministers Security Advisor: We have proposed to Iran and Saudi Arabia the establishment of a unified security coordination committee.

WTI crude oil drifts above $80.00 amidst a US Dollar rebound and supply shortage concerns

Alina Haynes

Apr 10, 2023 14:16

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In the early hours of Monday, purchasers of WTI crude oil struggled to maintain the price above $80.70 as risk aversion and hawkish Fed forecasts bolstered the US Dollar. However, threats to Oil supplies, primarily emanating from China and OPEC+, appear to keep purchasers of black gold optimistic.

 

US Dollar Index (DXY) reverses a four-day downtrend near 102.25 despite the inability of US Treasury bond yields to recover due to recession concerns. However, US 10-year and 2-year Treasury bond yields remain under pressure near 3.37 percent and 3.95 percent, respectively. In doing so, the benchmark bond coupons extend the previous day's losses and illustrate the market's flight to protection in response to concerns of an economic decline.

 

In spite of this, the recent disappointing US data reignite concerns of a recession in the world's largest economy and challenge the optimists in the energy sector. However, the positive US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) data enabled Fed hawks to return to the table and renew demands for a 0.25 percentage point rate hike in May. The same constrains the value of the US dollar and stimulates demand for WTI crude oil.

 

On the other hand, geopolitical concerns surrounding China, particularly after the dragon nation's military exercises near Taiwan, combine with last week's unexpected OPEC+ production cut to keep Oil purchasers optimistic.

 

China's willingness to defend the global economy through robust monetary and fiscal easing at home also enables Oil purchasers to maintain optimism in the face of optimism among the world's largest Oil consumers.

 

The Easter Monday holiday in spot markets may limit Oil price movements, but the investors appear to be out of steam, so US inflation and Fed Minutes will be closely monitored for signs of a pullback.