The
US House of Representatives passed a stopgap funding bill to avert a
US government shutdown that’ll now proceed to the Senate, where it is also likely to pass. The Bill contains no spending cuts and sailed
easily through the chamber winning 336 to 95:
- 209
Democrats voted for the bill - 27
Republicans voted for it
Otherwise
news flow was light during the session but there were data releases
from Japan, Australia and China to consider. The People’s Bank of
China weighed in also.
Japan’s
preliminary Q3 GDP data showed a contraction, the first in three
quarters:
- the
economy
shrank an annualised real 2.1% y/y
and 0.5% in
Q3 - inventory
subtracted 0.3%, domestic capital expenditure contracted 0.6%,
private consumption was flat - Of
note from the data was a massive surge for the Deflator, an inflation
indicator, to 5.1% y/y.
Australian
Q3 wages data
followed, coming in line with market expectations but nevertheless at
a 26
year
high. The
strong growth is not too far away from what the Reserve Bank of
Australia was expecting, and as they forecast more subdued growth ahead as
the economy weakens the data is not expected to put a scare into the RBA ahead
of the December policy meeting (widely expected to be an on hold
decision at this stage).
China’s
central bank boosted liquidity injections via its Medium-term
Lending Facility (MLF) today. The rate was unchanged at 2.5%. An unchanged rate was the unanimous expectation. The
Bank made 1450 billion yuan worth of fresh MLF loans, more than
offsetting the 850bn maturing. The net 600 billion yuan fresh fund
injection into the banking system is the largest since December
2016. This will further help support stimulus spending.
China’s
economic activity data showed pick-ups for consumer spending (retail
sales) and industrial output while investment growth slowed in the
face of the severe and ongoing property debt crisis.
USD/JPY
popped a little higher on the session, partially retracing its huge
drop post-US CPI on Tuesday.
Other
FX was a little more range bound.
USD/CNH
fell away after the Chinese data.