Market Update - 2nd June 2020 - AUD Surges As Protests Erupt Across America

AUD moves higher with stocks:

U.S and European stocks mostly gained overnight, while the AUD continued its march higher gaining around 1% over the past 24 hours and briefly eclipsing 0.6800 vs. the Greenback. The AUD has added nearly 200 points vs. the U.S Dollar since Friday evening as protests escalated right across the U.S as a result of the death of George Floyd in Police custody. Things aren't looking great either for the U.S economy with the double whammy of high unemployment and social inequality/unrest coupled with the effects of coronavirus.

The German DAX was the only major index to fall, down around 1.65%.

RBA meeting: 

Locally we have the RBA meeting at 2.30pm this afternoon. The RBA is tipped to keep rates on hold at 0.25% as the impacts of coronavirus start to dissipate somewhat. The number of new cases has been more or less flat for around a month or so with most new cases a result of returning residents or extremely isolated outbreaks as we saw at Cedar Meats. Further restrictions were lifted yesterday in Victoria, and similar restrictions are being lifted right across the country. All of this is pretty bullish for the AUD and the local economy which has weathered the impacts of coronavirus remarkably well. I stand by my call that it's entirely possible Australia avoids the worst of this pandemic.

AUD EXCHANGE RATES:

AUD/USD – 0.6770

AUD/GBP – 0.5413

AUD/EUR – 0.6077

AUD/NZD – 1.0767

AUD/JPY – 72.833

OTHER MARKETS:

All Ords (XAO) – 5,938

Gold – A$2,555/oz

Silver – A$26.89/oz

Oil – US$35.77 barrel

DATA RELEASES TODAY:

AUD – Cash Rate & RBA Statement at 2.30pm

Senior FX Manager

Compass Markets

Contact Patrick for a quote on 0431 278 632.

*Above rates are indicative wholesale rates and intended as a guide only. Commentary above is my opinion and should not be construed as financial advice. I recommend you seek professional advice before doing anything of a financial nature.