By Lachlan Meakin

Equity markets

US markets pushed decidedly higher last night with the S&P 500 (US500) hitting record highs on the optimism that federal spending will revive growth and support corporate earnings with the new Biden administration inaugurated.

The NASDAQ 100 (NDX100) jumped more than 2% as Netflix (NFLX.NAS) surged after reporting solid earnings and a jump in subscribers.

Source: Google Finance

Following this lead futures in Hong Kong (HK50), Japan(JP225) and Australia (ASX200) are pointing to a higher opening for markets in the Asian session.

Currency markets 

US Dollar weakness continued with all major currencies performing well against the greenback with the exception of the Euro (EURUSD).

EURUSD headed lower ahead of tonight’s ECB monetary policy statement with traders expecting more QE in line with December’s €500bn extension to its pandemic-inspired quantitative easing programme.

Of the other major currencies the Canadian Dollar (USDCAD) was the best performer rising to a two-year high after the Bank of Canada predicted a strong second half rebound.

Source: GO MT4

The Aussie Dollar (AUDUSD) will be the currency to watch during the local session with the monthly employment change and unemployment rate released at 11:30am AEST.

Gold

Spot gold (XAUUSD) again rallied suggesting gold has now entered a bullish phase after bouncing decisively off the recent lows.

Gold moved up $31 an ounce or around 1.7% during the session with US Dollar weakness and the indication from the new US administration that more stimulus is coming creating a strong tailwind for the gold price going forward.

Source: GO MT4

Bitcoin

Bitcoin (BTCUSD) again consolidated and is trading in an ever-tightening range, finishing down for the session despite US Dollar weakness. With Bitcoin’s ascent quickly giving way to profit-taking momentum has stalled with $40,000 seen as a key level by JPMorgan strategists who believe investors will likely continue to exit their bitcoin positions unless it can retake that critical support level.

Source: GO MT4

By Lachlan Meakin

Key upcoming events

• ECB Monetary policy statement and press conference (EURUSD. Euro Indices)
• Bank of England Governor Bailey speaks (GBPUSD, UK100)
• New Zealand CPI q/q (NZDUSD)

Thursday, 21 January 2021  Indicative Index Dividends Dividends are in Points
ASX200	WS30	US500	US2000	NDX100	CAC40	STOXX50
0	0	0.094	0.075	0	0	0
ESP35	ITA40	FTSE100	DAX30	HK50	JP225	INDIA50
0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Disclaimer: The articles are from GO Markets analysts,  based on their independent analysis or personal experiences. Views or opinions or trading styles expressed are of their own;  should not be taken as either representative of or shared by GO Markets.  Advice (if any),  are of a ‘general’ nature and not based on your personal objectives, financial situation or needs.  You should therefore consider how appropriate the advice (if any) is to your objectives, financial situation and needs, before acting on the advice.  If the advice relates to acquiring a particular financial product, you should obtain and consider the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Financial Services Guide (FSG) for that product before making any decisions.

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