Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Tuesday, October 10:
1. Euro hits 1-week highs, Catalonia developments eyed
The euro rose to one-week highs against the dollar on Tuesday following upbeat German trade data and hawkish remarks by a European Central Bank official who called for an end to stimulus.
The euro shrugged off concerns about Catalonia ahead of a possible unilateral declaration of independence by the region’s President Carles Puigdemont later in the day.
The dollar eased, with the U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, down 0.43% to 93.15 by 06:08 AM ET (10:08 GMT).
The softer dollar helped the Turkish lira pull back from Monday’s nine-month trough, with USD/TRY last at 3.6827.
2. Global stocks mixed amid geopolitical concerns
World shares hit a fresh all-time high on Tuesday, but European markets dipped as traders waited to see whether Spain's Catalonia region would push for independence later in the day.
Spain’s IBEX was down around 0.7% while the other major indices were flat to lower.
Markets in Japan and South Korea ended higher after returning from holidays in spite of ongoing tensions on the Korean peninsula.
Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 futures up around 0.16%, the Dow futures up 0.16% and the Nasdaq 100 futures adding on 0.2%
3. Russia’s central bank to ban cryptocurrency websites
Russia’s central bank announced Tuesday that the country will block access to websites of exchanges that offer crypto-currencies such as bitcoin, calling them “dubious”.
“We think that for our citizens, for businesses the usage of such crypto-currencies as an investment object carries unreasonably high risks," Russian Central Bank First Deputy Governor Sergei Shvetsov said.
Bitcoin prices were last up 0.29% at $4,796.20.
4. German exports surge, UK exports shrink
Data on Tuesday showed that German exports outstripped imports in August, adding to evidence that the euro area’s largest economy performed strongly in the third quarter.
Exports rose by 3.1% on the month while imports were up 1.2%. It was the largest increase in export growth in a year.
In contrast, UK exports shrank by 0.7% in August, dashing hopes that the weaker pound would help boost exports. UK imports surged 4.2% on the month, sending the goods trade deficit to a record high.
5. U.S. Chamber warns U.S. demands could doom NAFTA talks
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce urged the Trump administration on Tuesday to moderate its stance in the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, warning that some of Washington's demands could doom the talks.
The chamber's president and chief executive will raise a red flag about the progress of the negotiations, according to advance excerpts of a speech he was due to make in Mexico City on Tuesday morning Reuters reported.
The U.S., Mexico and Canada began renegotiating the trade pact this summer, with a fourth round of talks kicking off this week in Washington.