FYI: U.S. stock index futures were slightly higher Thursday morning.
At around 03:45 a.m. ET, Dow futures rose 36 points, indicating a positive open of more than 67 points. Futures on the S&P and Nasdaq were both slightly higher.
Market focus is largely attuned to the Federal Reserve’s central banking meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming over the next two days.
European stocks wavered after the release of fresh economic data for the region came in above expectations.
The Stoxx Europe 600 moved between small gains and losses after preliminary purchasing managers index figures—a measure of activity in the manufacturing and services sectors—for Germany and France beat forecasts to post small rises.
The German DAX rose 0.1% after, while the French CAC 40 slipped 0.3%.
sian stocks were mixed, with the Shanghai Composite down 0.1%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng down 0.9% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 up 0.1%.
In currencies, the Chinese yuan slipped against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, to its lowest levels since 2008. One U.S. dollar recently bought 7.077 onshore yuan, compared with 7.0835 in the offshore market.
The German 10-year bund was yielding minus 0.653%, slightly up from Wednesday afternoon’s minus 0.677%.
The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 1.587% on Thursday, from 1.577% on Wednesday, while the 2-year Treasury yield fell was steady at 1.567% from 1.569%. Investors closely watch the gap between the two yields, as recessions have often followed when the yield on the longer-term note has higher than that of the shorter-term bond, as it did briefly last week.
Thursday marks the first day of the Jackson Hole symposium, where central bank leaders from across the globe will meet to discuss issues facing world economies. Amid recent data pointing to a slowdown, analysts will be watching for cues on central bank policy moving forward.
In commodities, global benchmark Brent crude oil gained 0.1% to $60.36 a barrel. Gold prices slipped 0.4%.
Regards,
Ted
:
WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-stocks-waver-as-european-data-beats-forecasts-11566461096Bloomberg
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-21/asia-stocks-look-to-gains-as-traders-mull-fed-markets-wrapIBD:
https://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/dow-jones-futures-apple-stock-market-rally-splunk-synopsys-keysight/CNBC:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/22/us-stocks-jackson-hole-summit-in-focus-after-bond-market-yield-curve-inverts.htmlU.K.
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-stocks/ftse-100-falls-after-fed-minutes-deal-talks-lift-nmc-health-idUKKCN1VC0M2Europe:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-stocks/european-shares-dip-as-fed-cools-further-easing-hopes-idUSKCN1VC0L1Asia:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-mixed-on-weak-japan-manufacturing-data-2019-08-21/printBonds:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/21/us-bonds-fed-meeting-minutes-in-focus-ahead-of-g7-summit.htmlCurrencies:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/22/forex-markets-federal-reserve-meeting-minutes-in-focus.htmlOil:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/22/oil-markets-us-crude-stocks-global-economy-in-focus.htmlGold:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/22/gold-markets-federal-reserve-in-focus.htmlCuirrent Futures:
https://finviz.com/futures.ashx 
