Daily Market Commentary 14th October 2020

Coronavirus surges in Europe and a weak ZEW Economic Sentiment report dampened market enthusiasm overnight. The IMF reviewed global growth forecasts higher, but the surge in the virus and economically restrictive measures employed to combat them, impacted markets. The EUR slipped back to 1.1735, while the GBP crashed to 1.2930, as virus surges and trade talks with Europe continued to flail.

The Chinese have effectively imposed a ban on Australian coal, as the political war between the two trading partners escalates, although the trade numbers continue to reflect massive improvements? This did little for the AUD, which fell back to 0.7150, while the NZD attempted to hold 0.6630. NZ House prices surged, due to lack of supply and cheap mortgages, leading to a surge in credit card spending. The local election on Saturday should provide further downward pressures coming to bear.