Daily summary: Wobbly start to new month

• European indices finished the first trading session of August mostly lower dragged by energy and real estate companies coupled with weak economic data.

• Final S&P Global manufacturing PMIs showed factory activity contracted in July in all major economies in the Euro Area, while retail sales in Germany were also affected by inflation. 

• Major Wall Street indices swing between gain and losses on Monday as traders digested better than expected economic data while awaiting a slew of earnings reports. 

• ISM manufacturing data beat analysts’ estimates and signaled that price pressures in the US could be weakening. 

• US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will most likely visit Taiwan, despite the opposition of the Chinese authorities. 

• Brent crude fell below $100.00 per barrel and WTI tested $ 93.00 per barrel, after PMIs for China and Europe showed weakness in factory activity which weighed on demand. OPEC monthly secondary sources survey showed that quota-bound members undershoot July target by 1.3 million bpd. 

• Gold jumped above $ 1770 per ounce, while silver trades above psychological resistance at $20.00 amid weaker dollar and lower bond yields. The yield on the US Treasury 10-year note dropped below the 2.6% mark, a level not seen since April. 

• Currently NZD and JPY are the best performing major currencies while CAD and USD lag the most.

• Cryptocurrencies started the new month on a weaker tone. Bitcoin price returned below $23.000, while Ethereum dropped to $1630. 

The USDJPY pair extended last week declines and fell below $ 132.00. Nevertheless, looking at the D1 interval, pair hit a key support level at $ 131.5, which is marked with previous price reactions and the EMA100 which acted as a solid line of support in the past. If buyers manage to regain control, rebound towards recent highs cannot be ruled out. Otherwise, breaking below the aforementioned support could push the pair towards the 126.50 area. Source: xStation5