Oil prices fall and stocks gain on news Iran is seeking de-escalation, despite strikes continuing. The Bank of Japan is set to hold rates today amid a hiking cycle. Extra May holidays boost Chinese retail sales and suppress production.
In our deep dive interview, ANZ Senior Commodities Strategist Daniel Hynes analyses the Israel-Iran conflict and the ability of OPEC to respond to any disruption with increased supply.
5 things to know in 5 minutes:
Oil fell and stocks gained on news Iran was seeking de-escalation of the conflict with Israel. ANZ Economist Bansi Madhavani says financial markets will remain on edge amid ongoing volatility
With the US dollar softer overnight, ANZ Head of FX Research Mahjabeen Zaman analyses how it has tracked in recent days, at a time when it has also been losing its some of its safe haven status.
The Bank of Japan has a rate call today. Expectations are for a hold at 0.5%. ANZ International Economist Tom Kenny says the BoJ is looking for how resilient the Japanese economy is to the recent global tariff shock.
Mahjabeen says a key area of focus in coming days is the pace of Japanese Government Bond purchases.
China retail sales surprised to the upside in May - up 6.4% annually. Meanwhile, industrial production was up only 5.8% - lower than in April and the slowest since November 2024. ANZ Senior China Strategist Zhaopeng Xing says two additional holiday days in May means both swings will be temporary.
Cheers,
Alex (standing in for Bernard).
PS: Catch you tomorrow with analysis of US retail sales data and a look ahead to the FOMC’s US rate decision.
