More of the same on the Australian market

15.24 AEST, Monday 27 August 2012

More of the same on the Australian market

By Tim Waterer (Senior Trader, CMC Markets)

Financial markets continue to play the waiting game as hopes remain elevated for central banks action come September. Trading activity this week will likely be subdued in the early going before building to a crescendo by the time Jackson Hole makes its annual appearance on the world financial stage later in the week.

Talk of a potential yield ban target is keeping the Euro supported around the 1.25 level, which is helping to offset any negative vibes which were created by a realisation that a German court ruling on the ESM may delay the ECB from presenting a concrete action plan during its scheduled September press conference.

Competing forces are at play in the oil market with talk of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) creating some downward price pressure, however Tropical Storm Isaac is serving to keep the price of crude honest based on potential production disruptions. If we do happen to get some market-appeasing statements from the ECB and the FOMC over coming weeks the price of US crude will likely get a kick along to $100 unless the SPR is tapped into.

It was a case of ‘more of the same’ for the Australian sharemarket to commence the new week, with traders still playing the guessing game with regards to future stimulus injections in Europe and the US. With investors mindful of a key event at Jackson Hole later this week, the ASX200 just ticked along at a pedestrian pace today with investors waiting to see Bernanke's inclination for a third round of Quantitative easing.
ends

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