US markets fall after a large Nvidia stake sale. Australian consumer confidence dips again, while businesses say conditions are the best in 20 months. And New Zealand inflation expectations remain anchored.
In our Deep-Dive interview, ANZ Senior Economist Tom Kenny reviews comments from the Fed on AI’s impact on the US economy.
5 things to know in 5 minutes:
US markets traded weaker overnight, as a large Nvidia stake sale weighed particularly on large tech stocks. Meanwhile, in Australia the ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence series dipped for the send week in a row, down one point to 83.5, says ANZ Economist Sophia Angala. The reading followed the Reserve Bank of Australia’s rate hold last week, following a surprise Q3 inflation print.
Also out yesterday was NAB’s business survey, showing business conditions at their highest since March 2024. ANZ Senior Economist Adelaide Timbrell says indicators are that inflation will slow.
Adelaide says ANZ Research is forecasting that the most surprising element of Q3’s inflation data - the strong trimmed mean measure - shouldn’t be repeated in Q4.
New Zealand one-year ahead inflation expectations rose two basis points to 2.39%, while two-year ahead inflation expectations remained steady this quarter, according to the Reserve Bank survey of forecasters. ANZ Senior Economist Miles Workman says expectations appear to be anchored.
New Zealand heavy traffic movements eased 0.2% in October, potentially indicating some weakness in current activity. However ANZ New Zealand Chief Economist Sharon Zollner says a pick up in light traffic activity is sending stronger signals about what is driving a resumption in growth.
Cheers,
Bernard.
PS: Catch you tomorrow with a look at how Australian housing lending is performing.
