Australia: Economic growth to sustain at a steady rate - NAB

Sandeep Kanihama FXStreet Contributor

Analysts at NAB explain that they are quietly confident that improving prospects for infrastructure construction and non-mining business investment will help sustain Australia’s economic growth at a steady (but moderate) rate, despite some obstacles ahead.

Key Quotes

“Real GDP growth is forecast to strengthen in coming quarters to 3.2% y/y by Mar-18, ease to 2.4% by Dec-18 before picking up slightly to 2.6% by end-19. Our inflation forecasts have been revised down slightly to reflect new weights from the ABS, with core inflation expected to hit the bottom of the RBA target band by end-18. The RBA remains comfortably on hold, with few hints of a move in either direction. We still expect two 25bp hikes in H2 2018, subject to more progress being made on reducing unemployment and/or underemployment, and wages growth showing some (at least tentative) signs of picking up.”

Author

Sandeep Kanihama

FXStreet Contributor

Sandeep Kanihama is an FX Editor and Analyst with FXstreet having principally focus area on Asia and European markets with commodity, currency and equities coverage. He is stationed in the Indian capital city of Delhi.

EUR/USD looks apathetic around 1.1770

EUR/USD comes under renewed pressure on Tuesday, deflating below the 1.1800 support and reversing two consecutive days of gains. The pair’s decline follows the persistent move higher in the US Dollar, as trade uncertainty dominates the sentiment ahead of President Trump’s SOTU speech.

GBP/USD regains 1.3500 and above

GBP/USD extends its advance for the third day in a row on Tuesday, this time retesting the area beyond the 1.3500 hurdle. Cable’s uptick comes despite decent gains in the Greenback and the dovish message from the BoE’s Bailey at the UK Parliament.

Gold appears offered around $5,150

Gold is giving back a good portion of the recent multi-day rally, receding to the $5,150 zone per troy ounce amid the decent bounce in the US Dollar and mixed US Treasuty yields. In the meantime, markets’ attention remain on upcoming comments from Fed speakers.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP come under renewed pressure amid ETF outflows, tariff uncertainty

Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple are trading under increasing selling pressure at the time of writing on Tuesday, as market participants navigate renewed tariff uncertainty. The Crypto King holds above $63,000, down 2% intraday from its $64,656 open.

The Citrini report: How a debatable AI narrative can shake Wall Street

That AI-related headline alone was enough to rattle investors.US stocks slid sharply on Monday after a widely circulated Citrini Research memo outlined a hypothetical “2028 Global Intelligence Crisis”, warning that rapid AI adoption could push US unemployment into double digits as early as by mid-2028.

XRP pressured by weak ETF flows and declining retail interest

Ripple (XRP) is edging lower, trading above its intraday low of $1.32 at the time of writing on Tuesday. The decline from its weekly opening of $1.39 reflects heightened volatility in the broader cryptocurrency market, accentuated by tariff-triggered uncertainty.