Asian equities posted gains Monday while the dollar dipped as investors digested news that the US Justice Department subpoenaed the Federal Reserve, raising fears over US central bank independence.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell confirmed the unprecedented move late Sunday, which he blasted as part of US President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign for another rate cut. The Fed has indicated it would hold rates steady.
“The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public, rather than following the preferences of the President,” Powell said in a statement late Sunday.
Powell said the bank received grand jury subpoenas on Friday related to his Senate testimony in June, which had been about a major renovation project of Federal Reserve office buildings.
It came on the heels of Friday’s soft US jobs report showing just 50,000 new positions in December and unemployment slipping to 4.4 percent.
The dollar fell about 0.2 percent against major peers, according to Bloomberg, while gold surged 1.5 percent as investors faced with political uncertainty sought safe havens.
Asian markets posted gains in early trade. Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul and Taipei climbed, tracking Wall Street’s record close Friday.
Bangkok, Manila, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Jakarta were also up.
Most stock markets have enjoyed a solid start to the year, with indices in Frankfurt, London, Paris and Seoul hitting record highs last week, largely on optimism for the tech sector and gains in defence sector shares.
Oil prices saw a slight dip, but largely held after a rally last week, as protests in Iran continued to stoke geopolitical risk and the US seizure of Venezuela’s crude supplies added to concerns of a supply glut.
President Trump has warned Tehran of repercussions if demonstrators were harmed, while Iran cautioned against foreign intervention.
On Sunday evening, Trump said he was considering potential military action against Iran following reports of a violent crackdown leading to the deaths of hundreds of people in the country.
“They’re starting to, it looks like,” Trump said, when asked by reporters aboard Air Force One if Iran had crossed his previously stated red line of protesters being killed.
“We’re looking at it very seriously. The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options. We’ll make a determination,” he said.
He also said that the Islamic republic’s leadership had called seeking “to negotiate” and that a meeting was being set up.
– Key figures at around 0230 GMT –
Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.4 percent at 26,327.33
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 4,138.32
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: (closed for holiday)
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.1 percent at $59.06 per barrel
Brent North Sea Crude: FLAT at $63.30 per barrel
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1656 from $1.1635 on Friday
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3424 from $1.3407
Dollar/yen: FLAT at 157.88 yen from 157.88 yen
Euro/pound: UP at 86.83 pence from 86.78 pence
London – FTSE 100: UP 0.8 percent at 10,124.60 (close)
New York – Dow: UP 0.5 percent at 49,504.07 points (close)
