- USDTHB : moving in the range 33.51 – 33.55 this morning, USDTHB slightly pulled back from Monday but still expect an uptrend in short term, supporting level 33.45
- SET Index: 1,641.5 (+0.90%), 23 Dec 2021
- S&P 500 Index: 4,725.8 (+0.62%), 23 Dec 2021
- Thai 10-year government bond yield (interpolated) : 1.93% (+3.00 bps), 23 Dec 2021
- US 10-year treasury yield: 1.50 (+4.00bps), 23 Dec 2021
- U.S. economy shows strength heading into COVID-19 winter wave
- Japan's record $940 billion budget may help COVID-hit economy, fiscal discipline in doubt
- France, Italy raise joint debt issuance idea for EU fiscal rule reform
- Dollar firm but risk-sensitive currencies also rise
U.S. economy shows strength heading into COVID-19 winter wave
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits held below pre-pandemic levels last week as the labor market tightens, while consumer spending increased solidly, putting the economy on track for a strong finish to 2021. The economy's stamina demonstrated in Thursday's data, which also showed new home sales racing to a seven-month high and manufacturing still buoyant in November, came as the nation was battling a resurgence in COVID-19 infections, driven by the Delta strain and the highly transmissible Omicron variant. That could hurt economic activity in the first quarter of 2022. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits were unchanged at a seasonally adjusted 205,000 for the week ended Dec. 18. Early this month, claims dropped to 188,000, the lowest level since 1969. Claims have declined from a record high of 6.149 million in early April of 2020.
Japan's record $940 billion budget may help COVID-hit economy, fiscal discipline in doubt
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's cabinet approved on Friday a record $940 billion budget for the next fiscal year as COVID-19 responses added to the costs of supporting an ageing population and rising military outlays to cope with China. The 107.6 trillion yen ($941.55 billion) budget for fiscal year 2022/23, which starts in April, is Japan's biggest-ever initial spending plan. The budget includes 5 trillion yen set aside to cover emergency costs of COVID-19, a record defence outlay of 5.37 trillion yen, the largest-ever welfare cost of 36.3 trillion yen and 24.3 trillion yen for debt servicing. Japan's public debt is twice the size of its $5 trillion economy, the heaviest among industrialised countries.
France, Italy raise joint debt issuance idea for EU fiscal rule reform
France and Italy said on Thursday the idea of more permanent joint EU debt issuance deserves an in-depth discussion when the 27-nation bloc reviews its fiscal rules next year, a suggestion likely to meet with resistance from Germany. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and French President Emmanuel Macron wrote in a joint article in the Financial Times that the EU's 800 billion recovery fund, for which the bloc borrowed as a whole for the first time, has been a success that should serve as a blueprint for the future. The paper proposes that to deal with the surge in public debt after the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU could set up an EU Debt Management Agency which would buy from the European Central Bank debt issued during the pandemic by EU governments.
Dollar firm but risk-sensitive currencies also rise
The 10-year government bond yield (interpolated) on the previous trading day was 1.93, +3.00 bps. The benchmark government bond yield (LB31DA, 10.0 years) was 1.93, +3.00 bps. LB31DA could be between 1.90-1.96. Meantime, the latest closed US 10-year bond yields was 1.50%, +4.00bps. USDTHB on the previous trading day closed around 33.55 Moving in a range from 33.51-33.55 this morning. USDTHB could be closed between 33.48-33.58 today. Meantime, The dollar edged higher against a basket of currencies on Thursday, but its gains were capped as easing fears of fallout from the Omicron coronavirus variant supported higher risk currencies such as the Australian dollar and British pound.
Sources : ttb analytics , Bloomberg, CNBC, Investing, CEIC
