The Euro hit a new high at $1.3623

Good Morning,

- The Euro hit a new high at $1.3623, a level not seen since early February, with its 2013 peak of $1.3711 in eyes.

- Asian shares: Japan's Nikkei -0.09%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.83% (07:00 GMT), Korea's Kospi 0.60%, Australia's ASX 200 0.33%.

- The euro rallied after Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta won a confidence vote in parliament as Silvio Berlusconi backtracked on threats to bring down the government. Adding to the euro's momentum, the European Central Bank reiterated it was ready to use any policy option to temper market interest rates, but did not flag immediate action.

- The dollar rebounded against the yen but struggled close to an eight-month low against other majors as the U.S. government shutdown dragged on and positive developments in Italian politics helped lift the euro.

- Nothing new from Draghi. The ECB has not changed its policy or its guidance. The ECB is prepared to do more if needed and the risks to growth remain on the downside. The overall assessment is the same as before. Inflation is subdued, as are monetary aggregates and credit. He noted that Q2 growth was partly a recovery from the weather induced weakness in Q1, but that Q3 has begun off softer.
Balance sheet adjustments continue to weigh on activity. Draghi also presses governments to do their part and reduce deficits and debt levels and to enact structural reforms.

- BoE’s Carney: Won’t tighten until economy is growing sustainably.

- President Barack Obama met with Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress on Wednesday, but a solution seemed unlikely as both sides dug in for what could be a long stalemate. The standoff comes a few weeks ahead of the next political battle to raise the federal government's borrowing limit. Failure to do this could result in a worst-case scenario of an historic U.S. debt default.

- The Bank of Japan will wait at least until the second quarter of 2014 before deciding whether to add more stimulus, as it gauges the impact of an April sales-tax increase, said Atsushi Mizuno, a former BOJ board member. “It is too early to judge whether additional monetary easing will be necessary” when the levy is raised in April, “The BOJ has said they have done enough, and will do more if necessary, but collecting evidence supporting the need to do more will take a lot of time.”

- Governor Haruhiko Kuroda in April ramped up purchases of Japanese government bonds and other assets, aiming to generate 2 percent inflation within about two years. The monetary base, a measure of money supply, rose to a record 185.6 trillion yen last month, the BOJ said yesterday.

- A BOJ quarterly survey for September released yesterday showed 25.8 percent of individuals said the economy will worsen in the year ahead, up from 16.8 percent in June.

- China's official purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the non-manufacturing sector rose to 55.4 in September from 53.9 in August.

- New Zealand dollar, rallied after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand said larger increases in interest rates would be needed if new limits on mortgage lending fail to cool the country's housing market.

- Watch today: EU retail sales, US jobs & consumer comfort.

Have a nice Day!