Morning Update – 15/12/2017 – by Arjun Lakhanpal

Morning all.. Wall St actually had a down day but it was marginal with the S&P closing down just 0.4% after very strong Retail sales data and the Fed hiking. Asian equity markets followed suit in a quiet session with the Nikkei down a further 0.62% as USDJPY gave up gains. Hong Kong and Chinese equities paced a region-wide slide, while Tokyo shares fell with the Topix index declining for the first week in four. The greenback remained under pressure after Republican Senator Marco Rubio threatened to opposed the tax legislation unless Senate leaders agree to a larger child tax credit. The euro held onto a retreat after the ECB remained cautious about the prospects of reaching its inflation goals, even as it reiterated a pledge to keep stimulus in place. ECB President Mario Draghi sounded cautious about the prospect of inflation picking up even as economic growth remains robust. Confidence among Japan’s big manufacturers has improved to the highest level in a decade as the global economy continues to underpin exports and corporate profits. Sentiment among large manufacturers rose to 25 from 22 three months ago, the highest level since 2006, according to the quarterly Tankan survey released by the Bank of Japan on Friday. FX markets were very quiet.. Data this morning is light with EU trade data being the highlight so a quiet morning seen. Good luck..