Hong Kong democrats score landslide victory in local elections - RTRS

Democratic candidates across the city of 7.4 million secured more than half of the 452 district council seats.
The outcome should be risk-friendly for the immediate term; Eyes on AUD/JPY.

Ross J Burland FXStreet

Reuters reported that "Democratic candidates across the city of 7.4 million secured more than half of the 452 district council seats for the first time, against a strongly resourced and mobilized pro-establishment opposition."

"As of 5:00 a.m. (2100 GMT), pro-democracy candidates had secured a majority with at least 283 seats, compared to about 32 seats for the pro-establishment camp, according to local media estimates. A record 1,104 candidates were vying for 452 seats."
“The government needs to know that if they don’t answer our demands, we will continue demanding and the protests will not stop,” said a 26-year-old pro-democracy voter who gave her name as Cda."

Update

"Pan-democrats apparently have scored a huge victory in HK district council elections. It's hoped they will expand influence within constitutional framework from now on,stop radical street politics. It's also hoped the elections will be turning point in ending the riots"

- Hu Xijin, the Chief in Editor for the Global Times.

FX implications:

One would presume that this is pro-risk for markets, hopefully giving the protesters a score over the elite, although only time will tell as to whether the lull in troubles leading into the elections will continue or not. President US Trump is on standby with respect to the Honk Kong bill and we are expecting announcements soon – "Trump also made clear his reluctance to sign the Hong Kong Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which passed Congress with overwhelming support ," which impinged on US/Chinese relations, "Republican senators responded by insisting that the bill would become law, using a Congressional override of a presidential veto if needed," analysts at Westpac explained. The yen and Aussie are the most correlated currencies to US-China trade disputes making AUD/JPY a compelling technical set-up:

Author

Ross J Burland

FXStreet

Ross J Burland, born in England, UK, is a sportsman at heart. He played Rugby and Judo for his county, Kent and the South East of England Rugby team.

AUD/USD remains depressed 0.7000, awaits FOMC Minutes

AUD/USD struggles to capitalize on its recent recovery move and trades with a negative bias below 0.7000 in Wednesday's Asian session. Amid geopolitical uncertainty, the US Dollar attracts some dip-buyers after a fresh leg up in US bond yields, keeping the pair under pressure despite hawkish RBA expectations. All eyes now remain on the FOMC Minutes.

USD/JPY holds firm near 158.50 ahead of Fed Minutes

USD/JPY hangs close to a one-and-a-half-week high near 158.50 in the Asian session on Wednesday, with bulls now awaiting a move beyond the 200-day SMA hurdle before positioning for further gains ahead of the FOMC Minutes. Meanwhile, a fresh leg up in US bond yields revives US Dollar demand amid geopolitical uncertainties, boosting the pair amid dovish BoJ commentary.

Gold falls as US Dollar, Treasury yields rebound ahead of Fed Minutes

Gold falls nearly 1.20% as the US Dollar and US Treasury yields resume their advance. Traders await the FOMC Minutes for fresh clues on the likelihood of another rate hike before year-end.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP fall liquidating $550M

Bitcoin’s correction follows a recent rejection due to supply around $87,200. Altcoins are generally in a correction trend, as Ethereum edges lower toward the next key support at $2,600 and Ripple extends its down leg near the $1.45 demand area.

Risk sentiment sours, as UK employment picture darkens

Risk sentiment is deteriorating further as we move through Wednesday. The price of Brent crude oil is now above $102 per barrel, the sell off in European stock indices is deepening, and the gold price is lower by more than 1%.

Eurozone inflation just hit 3.8%, its highest in three years. This chart shows why the ECB can’t simply hike its way out

The ECB would normally have a relatively straightforward answer to inflation running almost twice its target: raise interest rates. But these are not normal circumstances. This time, the bond market is already doing part of the tightening for it, leaving the ECB facing an increasingly difficult dilemma.