Themes

• General mood is “risk off”
• U.S. ADP Non-Farm Payroll Change stronger at 475k from 378k talk
• Fed’s Powell: “would be appropriate to raise by 35bps in March.”

What’s Moving

Fed’s Powell in his testimony to the House noted that it “would be appropriate to raise by 35bps in March.” He also mentioned that the economy was strong.

This news put equities on a tear, being less hawkish than some other Fed members. Concerns about supply disruptions also caused a massive gain on oil prices, which settled over 4110/bbl. 

In other news, the Canadian Dollar was the strongest currency overnight, after the BoC raised interest rates by 25bps. Other currencies were largely choppy in light trade.

Thoughts

A little bit of local data today, but eyes will remain on the Ukrainian conflict with Russia today.

Data for today sees:

• Australian Building Approvals (E: -2.9%)
• Chinese Caixin Services PMI (E: 50.9)
• Japanese Consumer Confidence (E: 35.0)

Pivot Points