· The dollar edged down on Wednesday, as concerns about a possible U.S. government shutdown offset optimism about progress on tax reform legislation, while the Australian dollar weakened after economic data showed worrying signs for growth.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, inched 0.1 percent lower to 93.297.
The euro was steady on the day at $1.1828, while the dollar edged down 0.1 percent against its Japanese counterpart to 112.38 yen.
· A massive overhaul of the U.S. tax system looks set to get the green light by Christmas. But whether it will translate into a boost for U.S. President Donald Trump over the longer term remains to be seen, according to a former White House official.
Tony Fratto, founder and partner of Hamilton Place Strategies and deputy press secretary during George W Bush's tenure at the White House, told CNBC on Tuesday that the tax reform plan was a "big win" for Trump and the Republican party.
· The Japanese government plans to cooperate with China on its Belt and Road initiative by financially supporting private-sector partnerships, as Tokyo seeks to improve bilateral ties with its Asian neighbour, the Nikkei reported on Wednesday.
· Japan’s economy was expected to expand slightly faster in the third quarter than first estimated, a Reuters poll found, buoyed by strong capital spending and showing robust exports and business investment supporting the economy.
The world’s third-largest economy was expected to post revised annualised growth of 1.5 percent in July-September, up from the initial estimate of 1.4 percent, the poll of 16 economists showed.
· A raft of Chinese data in coming weeks is expected to show the world’s second-largest economy came under growing pressure in November as the government intensified crackdowns on polluting industries and financial risks.
Growth in factory output is seen slowing to 6 percent on-year in November from October’s 6.2 percent, according to a Reuters poll of 23 economists.
Fixed-asset investment growth is also predicted to have eased to 7.2 percent in January-November, from a 7.3 percent rise in the first 10 months of the year.
Retail sales growth is expected to accelerate to 10.2 percent on-year from 10 percent the previous month, buoyed by the annual “Singles’ Day” shopping frenzy promoted by e-commerce giant Alibaba.
· South Korean President Moon Jae-in will visit China from Dec. 13-16, China’s official Xinhua news agency said on Wednesday, citing Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.
Xinhua did not give further details but the visit will come at a time of heightened tensions on the Korean peninsula.
· Oil prices dipped on Wednesday, as refined product inventories in the United States rose in what the market interpreted as a sign of lacklustre demand.
Brent crude futures LCOc1, the international benchmark for oil prices, were down 6 cents at $62.80 a barrel as of 0751 GMT.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $57.50 a barrel, down 22 cents.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC, Xinhua
Thai
Eng