German Factory Orders Fell in September

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From Trading Economics: German industrial orders unexpectedly dropped by 0.6 percent month-on-month in September of 2016, following a downwardly revised 0.9 percent rise in August and missing market consensus of a 0.3 percent gain. It was the first decline since June and the fastest fall since April, driven by weak demand from home and abroad. In September, domestic orders went down by 1.1 percent, followed by foreign demand (-0.3 percent). New orders from the euro area decreased by 4.5 percent while those from other countries were up by 2.5 percent.

Market Snap

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In Asian Equity Markets stocks bounced and the dollar strengthened on Monday after the FBI said it stood by its earlier recommendation that no criminal charges were warranted against Democrat Hillary Clinton. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan advanced 0.8 percent. Leading regional gainers were Australian stocks and Japanese stocks with gains of 1.3 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively. The broader Topix finished up 1.2 percent at 1,362.80, while the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 also added 1.2 percent to 12,212.46. The Shanghai Composite Index edged up 0.02 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.44 percent.

In Currency Markets the dollar rose on Monday as news that Democrat Hillary Clinton would not face criminal charges related to her use of a private e-mail server gave the U.S. presidential contender an eleventh hour boost before the Nov. 8 election. The dollar rose 1.2 percent at 104.255 yen after rising to 104.530 in early trade. The euro fell 0.6 percent at $1.1077, knocked off a four-week peak of $1.1143 reached on Friday.  The dollar was up 0.8 percent at $0.9757 franc after going as high as $0.9789.  The U.S. currency was down 1.8 percent at 18.68 Mexican pesos to the dollar after touching 18.56, its weakest since Oct. 26. The greenback was down 0.1 percent at C$1.3388 per dollar after reaching an eight-month peak of C$1.3466 on Friday.

In Commodities Markets oil prices rose by over 1 percent on Monday, with traders citing opportunistic buying after sharp declines in the previous week that brought prices to their lowest since early August because of ongoing weak fundamentals. International Brent crude oil futures were trading at $46.20 per barrel, up 1.36 percent, from their previous close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 1.5 percent, at $44.72 a barrel. WTI hit $43.57 on Friday, its lowest since Sept. 20. Spot gold was down 0.7 percent at $1,295.01 an ounce. The metal hit a low of $1,287.86 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures fell 0.7 percent to $1,295.80 per ounce.

In US Equity Markets  the S&P 500 ended lower on Friday for a ninth straight day, the longest losing streak for the benchmark index in more than 35 years, as investors stayed on edge ahead of an uncertain U.S. election. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.24 percent, to 17,888.28, the S&P 500 lost 0.17 percent, to 2,085.18 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.24 percent, to 5,046.37. Higher-than-expected quarterly profits from biotech company Regeneronand health insurer Humana  lifted those companies' shares, along with the S&P healthcare sector, which rose 0.8 percent on Friday. Consumer staples were the worst-performing group, falling 1 percent.

In Bond Markets  Japanese government bond prices fell on Monday after the FBI said it stood by its earlier recommendation that no criminal charges were warranted against Democrat Hillary Clinton, boosting expectations of her victory in the upcoming election. The 10-year JGB yield rose 1.0 basis point to minus 0.055 percent, while the 20-year yield rose 1.5 basis points to 0.375 percent.  U.S. Treasury prices gained on Friday as oil prices fell, raising concerns about low inflation, and as uncertainty about next week's U.S. presidential election enhanced the appeal of lower risk assets. Benchmark 10-year notes rose 7/32 in price to yield 1.79 percent.

Source: Institute of Trading and Portfolio Management