· Dollar falls, euro hovers at four-month high as EU negotiates rescue fund
The dollar was broadly lower on Friday as the euro rose to just under a four-month high, with negotiations underway between European Union leaders on a recovery fund that could lift the bloc out of the current recession.
EU leaders’ views on a mass stimulus plan remained “diametrically different”, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said on Friday. The 27 EU heads are struggling to reach consensus on the 2021-27 budget, proposed at above 1 trillion euros, and a linked new recovery fund worth 750 billion euros, meant to help rebuild southern economies most affected by the pandemic.
The euro EUR= was up 0.49% at $1.144 late in the North American session, just off Wednesday's top of $1.145, its highest since the coronavirus financial crash in March.
“A positive outcome by the end of the EU summit Saturday could potentially be the euro’s ticket to fresh highs for the year,” said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst at Western Union Business Solutions.
If progress is made, the euro could break through the technically significant $1.15 level, which has not been touched since February 2019.
The dollar index =USD, which heavily weights the euro, was 0.36% lower at 95.930. The dollar was also weaker against the yen JPY= and the Swiss franc CHF=, as a risk-on move diminished appetite for safe-haven assets and bolstered U.S. equities.
· EU SUMMIT
Ø EU extends summit to Sunday after deadlock over COVID recovery plan
European Union leaders failed to agree on a massive stimulus fund to revive their coronavirus-hammered economies on Saturday after two days of fraught negotiations, but extended their summit for another day to try and overcome their differences.
Ø EU needs ambitious financial deal more than fast one, Lagarde says
It is better for European Union leaders to agree an ambitious financial aid package for the bloc rather than to have a quick deal at any cost, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Sunday.
Ø 'Diametrically opposed positions' on coronavirus rescue package
There is still no agreement among EU leaders on a massive coronavirus recovery package after three days of intense meetings in Brussels.
Talks have focused on a proposed €1.68 trillion package, a seven-year budget and a coronavirus recovery fund.
Eastern Europe leaders have opposed attaching rule of law conditions, while southern European countries are rejecting demands from the so-called frugal four, now five, countries - Netherlands, Austria, Finland, Sweden and Denmark - for a great sum bound by economic reform requirements.
· CORONAVIRUS UPDATES:
Total confirmed cases: More than 14,640,059 | 213 Countries
Total deaths: At least 608,853
The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting 213 countries and territories around the world and 2 international conveyances. The day is reset after midnight GMT+0. The list of countries and territories and their continental regional classification is based on the United Nations Geoscheme. Sources are provided under "Latest Updates". Learn more about COVID-19 data
Ø US cases: At least 3,898,550, and deaths: 143,289
Ø Brazil cases: At least 2,099,896, and deaths: 79,533
Ø India cases: At least 1,118,107, and deaths: 27,503
Ø Ohio heading in the wrong direction and ‘could become Florida’ as coronavirus surges, governor warns
Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said Sunday that while his administration has stopped short of issuing a statewide mask ordinance, he’s not ruling out implementing that step as coronavirus cases continue to surge in the state.
“We’re going the wrong way,” Dewine said of the outbreak in Ohio during an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. But DeWine pushed back that the recent surge in the state’s number of confirmed Covid-19 cases was due entirely to a lack of a statewide mask mandate.
More than 9,500 people have been hospitalized in Ohio since the pandemic hit the state and at least 3,174 residents have died from the virus.
· Hong Kong tightens coronavirus restrictions as cases hit record
Hong Kong tightened coronavirus restrictions on Sunday, with non-essential civil servants told to work from home from this week, as the global financial hub reported a record number of daily cases.
Earlier on Sunday, an event by pro-democracy politicians to mark the one-year anniversary of an attack in a train station by an armed mob was stopped by police in riot gear for breaking coronavirus measures already in place that restrict group gatherings to four people.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam told a news conference the city recorded more than 100 cases in the past 24 hours, the most since the pandemic took hold in late January, taking the tally close to 2,000 patients, 12 of whom have died.
“The situation is very serious and there is no sign of it coming under control,” Lam said.
· ‘Ugly face’: U.S. and China trade barbs in Myanmar as South China Sea rift deepens
China’s embassy in Myanmar on Sunday accused the United States of “outrageously smearing” the country and driving a wedge with its Southeast Asian neighbors over the contested South China Sea and Hong Kong, as tensions mount between the superpowers.
Responding to U.S. claims Beijing was undermining the sovereignty of its neighbors, the Chinese embassy said U.S. agencies abroad were doing “disgusting things” to contain China and had showed a “selfish, hypocritical, contemptible, and ugly face”.
· JPMorgan says Chinese consumers are in ‘reasonably good shape’ despite miss in retail sales
The purchasing power of the Chinese consumer remains relatively robust but uncertainty from the coronavirus pandemic still lingers, according to Tai Hui, Asia chief market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management.
China may have missed analysts’ expectations in June’s retail sales numbers, but Chinese consumers “are still in reasonably good shape,” Hui told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Friday.
However, “I think it’s the consumer sentiment that’s been impacted by for example, the very brief outbreak in Beijing last month,” he said.
· Oil prices slip as coronavirus cases surge
Oil prices edged lower on Friday as concerns about the surge in coronavirus cases sapping fuel demand while major crude-producing nations ready increases in output.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 fell 23 cents a barrel to settle at $43.14 per barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 fell 16 cents to $40.59. Both contracts were little changed from a week earlier.
The United States reported at least 75,000 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, a daily record. Spain and Australia reported their steepest daily jumps in more than two months, while cases continued to soar in India and Brazil.
Fuel demand has broadly recovered from a 30% drop in April after nations worldwide restricted movements and businesses shuttered. Consumption remains below pre-pandemic levels, however, and fuel purchases are falling again as infections rise.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters, Worldometers, Euro News
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