Written Commentary
CURRENCY FUTURES
The U.S. dollar index is lower.
The euro currency firmed to its highest level in two months due to expectations the European Central Bank will keep raising interest rates in the coming months.
Euro zone producer prices declined for a fifth consecutive month and by more than predicted in February. Eurostat said prices at factory gates declined by 0.5% month-on-month in February. Economists had expected a monthly decline in prices of 0.3%.
The Reserve Bank of Australia held its cash rate steady at 3.6% at its policy meeting today, as expected, marking the first pause in the central bank’s hiking cycle since it began raising rates in May 2022.
STOCK INDEX FUTURES
Stock index futures are higher.
The Logistics Manager’s Index in the U.S. declined to a record low of 51.1 in March, pointing to the weakest growth in the logistics sector since records were first kept in 2016. The Logistics Manager’s Survey is a monthly report aimed at showing the status of the U.S. logistics situation.
The 9:00 central time February factory orders report is expected to show a 0.4% decline.
The 9:00 February Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) is anticipated to be 10.4 million.
Stock index futures have performed very well considering recent strains in the international financial system.
INTEREST RATE MARKET FUTURES
Loretta Mester of the Federal Reserve will speak at 5:45 this afternoon.
Futures are lower due the hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials.
Underlying support remains due to the belief that central banks will not be able to keep raising interest rates much longer.
The technicals and fundamentals for futures have become more supportive since early March.
Interested in more futures markets? Explore our Market Dashboards here.
Futures and options trading involve significant risk of loss and may not be suitable for everyone. Therefore, carefully consider whether such trading is suitable for you in light of your financial condition. The information and comments contained herein is provided by ADMIS and in no way should be construed to be information provided by ADM. The author of this report did not have a financial interest in any of the contracts discussed in this report at the time the report was prepared. The information provided is designed to assist in your analysis and evaluation of the futures and options markets. However, any decisions you may make to buy, sell or hold a futures or options position on such research are entirely your own and not in any way deemed to be endorsed by or attributed to ADMIS. Copyright ADM Investor Services, Inc.
