Morning Update – 07/03/2017 – by Arjun Lakhanpal

Morning all.. Wall St closed down 0.33% in a very quiet session for all assets. Ranges in FX were very tight and remained so in Asia. We saw the Nikkei close down 0.18% but again very quiet and no news. EUR remains a little soft as risks still remain with the Dutch Election this month.. Merkel said the EU might run into trouble unless we have courage to have a Europe of different speeds; EU needs to be open, but not everyone needs to be forced to participate in every project; if Europe gets ‘stuck’ it may run into danger faster than one might think. GBP also still under some pressure as Brexit Bill still is an issue: Govt at risk of 2nd defeat in House of Lords as Peers may call for a “meaningful vote” and a guarantee that Parliament can veto the final terms of Brexit agreement if the deal Govt makes is not good enough. In Japan BoJ Board Member Masai: BoJ stands ready to expand stimulus if needed as consumption and wage growth still lack momentum; risks to Japan’s economy have subsided compared to H2 ‘16; tightening jobs market supported household confidence/consumption; large swings in exchange rates, if they continue, could damage business sentiment. Elsewhere the RBA left cash rates unchanged at 1.5% as expected; global economic conditions have improved over recent months; reiterates rising AUD could complicate economic transition; expects headline inflation to pickup over 2017; med-term risks to China growth remain; notes house prices rising rapidly in some markets. Little impact on AUD but AUD was higher against the kiwi again. This morning we get UK Halifax house price index, Italian PPI and EU GDP.. Good luck.