In US economic data, housing starts rose from a downwardly revised 1.404 million annual rate in July to 1.575m in August (survey: 1.445m). Building permits fell from 1.685m to 1.517m in August (survey: 1.61m). Chain store sales in the past week were up 10.5% over the year, down from the 11.4% annual gain in the prior week.
European sharemarkets were weaker on Tuesday. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell for a sixth straight session, down 1.1% to 11-week lows. Real estate stocks led falls in response to a surprise 100 basis point lift in rates by the Swedish Riksbank. US and UK central banks make rate decisions in the next few days. Also German producer prices rose at a record rate in monthly and annual terms in August. The German Dax index fell by 1.0%. The UK FTSE index fell by 0.6%. In London trade, shares in Rio Tinto fell by 0.9%, but BHP rose by 1.0%.
US sharemarkets were weaker on Tuesday. Shares In Ford fell 12.3% after it flagged delivery delays and said inflation-related supplier costs will run about $1 billion higher than expected in the current quarter. Shares in rival General Motors lost 5.6%. At the close of trade, the Dow Jones index was lower by 313 points or 1.0%. The S&P 500 index fell by 1.1% and the Nasdaq index lost 110 points or 1.0%.
US treasuries fell on Tuesday (yields higher). US Treasury sold US$12 billion of 20-year bonds at a yield of 3.82%, up from 3.38% previously. US 10-year yields rose by 7 points to near 11-year highs around 3.56%. And US 2-year yields were steady near 15-year highs around 3.95%.
Major currencies generally eased against the US dollar in European and US trade. The Euro fell from near US$1.0040 to lows near US$0.9950 and was near US$0.9975 at the US close. The Aussie dollar fell from near US67.30 cents to lows near US66.75 cents and was near US66.95 cents at the US close. And the Japanese yen fell from 143.28 yen per US dollar to JPY143.91 and was near JPY143.70 at the US close.
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Global oil prices fell by 1.5% on Tuesday. Investors remain concerned that higher global interest rates will slow oil demand. Also the US dollar remained near two-decade highs, making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies. The Brent crude oil price fell by US$1.38 or 1.5% to US$90.62 a barrel. And the US Nymex crude oil price fell by US$1.28 or 1.5% to US$84.45 a barrel.
Base metal prices were mixed on the London Metal Exchange on Tuesday. Zinc, aluminium and lead fell by as much as 0.7% while other metals rose up to 1.5%, led by nickel. Copper was flat.
The gold futures price fell by US$7.10 an ounce or 0.4% to US$1,671.10 an ounce. Spot gold was trading near US$1,665 an ounce at the US close. Iron ore futures fell by US30 cents or 0.3% to US$98.33 a tonne.
Ahead: In Australia, the Reserve Bank (RBA) Deputy Governor delivers a speech. The RBA releases a review of the bond purchase program. Population data, skilled job vacancies and detailed labour force data are released. In the US, data on existing home sales is issued. The Federal Reserve hands down the rates decision.
Originally published by CommSec
