Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Wednesday, July 12:
1. Markets prep for Yellen and clues to tightening
With no major reports stateside on Wednesday, markets prepared for Federal Reserve (Fed) chair Janet Yellen’s semi-annual monetary policy testimony on the economy before Congress in Washington DC.
Yellen is scheduled to testify on the economy before the Senate Banking Committee at 10:00AM ET (14:00GMT) Wednesday but the text will be released 90 minutes earlier at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT).
Her comments will be monitored closely for any new insight on the timing of the next U.S. rate hike and clues on how the central bank plans to pare back its massive balance sheet.
It will also be the Fed chair’s first opportunity to comment on the June employment report that showed better than expected job creation, but with wage inflation remaining subdued.
Futures traders are pricing in around only a 13% chance of a hike at the Fed's September meeting, according to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor Tool. Odds of a December increase were seen at around 41%.
2. BoC expected to follow Fed footsteps
The Bank of Canada's (BoC) latest interest rate decision is due at 10:00AM ET (1400GMT) on Wednesday, with most experts expecting the central bank to raise its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 0.75%.
Speculation that the BOC was preparing to raise its key interest rate ramped up earlier this month after governor Stephen Poloz said that low interest rates appeared to have done their job.
Markets have recently been confronted with the reality that global central banks have largely shifted to a “less dovish” stance as they prepare to follow the Fed’s lead in the removal of accommodative policy.
The Bank of England is also on watch after three out of eight policymakers voted that it was time to hike rates, suggesting that the British monetary authority may well begin tightening this year.
Speculation that even the European Central Bank will have to move forward with a reduction of asset purchases has also been on the rise as part of the global move in central bank policy normalization.
3. Dollar takes post-Trump Jr. breather ahead of Yellen
The dollar held steady on Wednesday as investors looked ahead to the widely anticipated testimony from Fed chair Janet Yellen out later in the day.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was unchanged at 95.49 at 5:58AM ET (9:58GMT), not far from the nine-month low of 95.22 hit in late June.
The dollar came under pressure Tuesday after emails released by Donald Trump Jr revealed that he welcomed assistance from a Russian lawyer during his father's 2016 election campaign against Hillary Clinton.
4. Oil jumps ahead of inventory data, OPEC monthly report
Oil prices were higher in early morning North American trade on Wednesday, extending gains into a third-straight session, as investors looked ahead to weekly data from the U.S. on stockpiles of crude and refined products along with OPEC’s monthly report on oil.
With regard to the latter, adding to concerns over U.S. shale production, markets are particulary concerned about rising output in Nigeria and Libya who were exempt from production cuts.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported late Tuesday that U.S. crude oil inventories fell by 8.1 million barrels.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration will report official figures at 10:30AMET (14:30GMT) Wednesday amid expectations for a draw of 2.85 million barrels.
U.S. crude oil futures gained 1.62% to $45.77 at 5:59AM ET (9:59GMT) Wednesday, while Brent oil traded up 1.43% to $48.20.
5. Global stocks mixed with sights on Yellen
Global stocks showed mixed trade on Wednesday though the fact that Wall Street managed to shrug off a fresh twist in the controversy over U.S. President Donald Trump's alleged connection with Russia boosted investment sentiment in general.
U.S. futures showed caution but pointed to a slightly higher open ahead of Yellen’s testimony. At 6:00AM ET (10:00GMT), the blue-chip Dow futures gained 23 points, or 0.11%, S&P 500 futures rose 3 points, or 0.12%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures traded up 8 points, or 0.13%.
European stocks registered solid gains, bolstered by energy stocks and some positive earnings reports. At 6:01AM ET (10:01GMT), the benchmark Euro Stoxx 50 gained 0.81%, Germany’s DAX rose 0.75% while London’s FTSE 100 traded up 0.53%.
Earlier, Asian stocks closed mixed with Japan’s Nikkei off 0.6% on Wednesday as concerns over Trump Jr.’s emails pulled the dollar lower against the yen.