Friday 22nd May 2020

Market sentiment was tempered somewhat overnight by rising rhetoric between the US and China. NAB’s David de Garis says we can expect more of this as the gap in the President’s polling against Joe Biden has narrowed. China’s decision to impose new legislation on Hong Kong, without going through the legislative council, will add more fuel for Trump’s agenda, creating more market uncertainty. The good news over the last day was largely ignored by the markets – PMIs for the US and Europe were a little better than expected, and the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing survey showed that many expect the current slump to last less than six months. Here’s hoping.