Morning Wrap (08.07.2024)

Asia-Pacific indices record a declining session. Indexes from China are losing between 1.10-1.20%. Japan's Nikkei 225 index loses 0.30% and Australia's S&P/ASX200 is trading 0.65% lower. Singapore SG20cash index futures are losing 0.30%.

European index futures also point to a lower opening of the session on the Old Continent. The UK100 and DAX are losing around 0.25-0.35% each.

The forex market is relatively quiet in the first part of the day. Volatility on most currency pairs is limited to +/-0.10%. EURUSD is gaining 0.05% to the level of 1.80250.

Sunday saw the second round of parliamentary elections in France. A coalition of left-wing parties won the most seats by defeating the far right, but did not win a majority.

According to the final results, the left-wing alliance New Popular Front, formed just three weeks ago, won 182 seats. 289 seats are needed to secure a majority in the 577-seat National Assembly. President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Ensemble (Together) coalition came second with 168 seats, while the far-right National Rally, widely tipped to win after its first-round victory, secured 143 seats.

The result puts France in the first such situation in history in which no party has won an independent majority in parliament.

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would tender his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron on Monday morning, after his party failed to win a majority in parliamentary elections.

Japan's current account surplus increased in May for the 15th consecutive month. The current account rose to 2.85 trillion yen (US$24 billion) in May, compared with economists' median forecast of a surplus of 2.45 trillion yen and a surplus of 2.05 trillion yen the previous month. Returns on investments in securities abroad were boosted by the weak yen.

The war between Israel and Hamas in the Middle East continues. On Sunday night into Monday, Israeli IDF military forces launched massive attacks on the Gaza Strip, bombing the city center. 

Biden held further pre-election meetings over the past weekend, while the Democratic Party is weighing up all the pros and cons of Biden's official candidacy in the November presidential election. 

On Sunday afternoon, House of Representatives Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called a meeting with Democratic lawmakers that reportedly included a discussion of Mr Biden's candidacy. Four of those involved in the conversation spoke in favor of Biden's resignation. Sources said at least three others expressed concern about his chances in November.

In the cryptocurrency market, we are seeing a continuation of the worst sentiment. Although on Saturday Bitcoin rebounded as much as 4% to USD 57,000-58,000 after sizable declines during the week. It was on Sunday that we saw a return to declines, with Bitcoin today losing 0.75% to USD 55500.